


Memento Mori

by Wolfslick6007



Series: Personas and Queens [1]
Category: Persona 5, Six - Marlow/Moss
Genre: ADHD Anne Boleyn, ASD Catherine Parr, Abuse, Attempted Rape/Non-Con, Big surprise, Blood, But they aren’t major major, Canon-Typical Violence, F/F, From this point on all trigger warnings will be at the beginning of each chapter, Henry’s just as big an a-hole here, If you haven’t played Persona, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Implied/Referenced Sexual Harassment, I’ll add tags as I go, Language, Minor forced relationship, Minor/mentioned drugs, Name-calling towards an autistic person, Panic Attack, Past beheadings, Persona AU, Phantom Thief AU, Police Brutality, Reincarnated queens become Phantom Thieves, Reincarnation, Scars/birthmarks, Sensory overload (only mentioned at the moment), also some OCs, because I really wanted to keep that, false arrest, if you haven’t seen Six, its a musical about the six Tudor queens of england, just there for some minor social link stuff, past/implied sickness and death, scratching at scars, then things should get explained as I go
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-13
Updated: 2020-10-16
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:41:55
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 80,299
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26432107
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wolfslick6007/pseuds/Wolfslick6007
Summary: Memento Mori… Remember Death… Remember that you will die…~~||~~||~~Catherine Parr was never supposed to be in this situation. She was quiet, weird to her peers. But she was a good student, never causing any problems.So how did she end up on probation in London? Well, it was certainly a story. But that wasn’t the important part.All she wanted was to keep her head down and eventually return to her hateful hometown that turned on her the second she became a ‘criminal.’Never, did she believe she would become the leader of a group of Phantom Thieves. And what’s a Persona anyways?
Relationships: Anne Boleyn/Catherine of Aragon, Anne of Cleves/Jane Seymour, Katherine Howard/Catherine Parr
Series: Personas and Queens [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2064681
Comments: 148
Kudos: 100





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooh, boy! The second I had this idea, I knew I had to do it!
> 
> I’m not expecting this to get as popular as my other projects, I just thought this would be something fun to work on!
> 
> For those of you who haven’t played Persona 5, I’ll try to explain things as best as I can as the story progresses (the queens have to learn as well, yeah?)
> 
> For those of you have, then you’ll probably see this chapter to be very familiar (almost exactly the same) to that little beginning scene in the game. That’s not gonna be the entire story, this will be different from the game, I just needed to start it the same for story purposes.
> 
> With that out of the way, please pay attention to tags! These queens have been through a lot and that plus Persona 5 makes for angst (and hurt/comfort!)

Music blared through the theatre. Colored lights, set up just for the occasion, flashed brightly.

Many guests were cheering loudly. An incredibly small minority looked bored, lazily clapping their hands. The few teachers required to be there were clapping politely, laughs and smiles on their lips.

Everyone had enjoyed the show, but now it was coming to a close.

The drummer gave a resounding beat, the other three musicians putting all they had into the last burst of melody.

“WE’RE—!”

The six teens on stage, who had sung their whole hearts for this entire performance, struck a final pose, fists confidently in the air. And then, as one, their voices rang out.

“SIX!”

Cheers erupted and for a moment, the six could only stand there, panting for breath and still running on the adrenaline their performance had given them as they beamed at the audience.

They all danced together for a few moments, laughing happily. The blue teen taking someone’s phone to film the group before handing it back.

The six almost reluctantly exited the stage, chatting happily and loudly as they went.

“That was amazing!”

“I can’t believe they let us perform another time!”

“This is the fourth show! I guess the school likes it just that much!”

“I still think we should take it to actual theatre after graduation!”

“Hell yeah we should! I thought that was the plan in the first place?!”

The group headed into a spare classroom, where racks of outfits and their regular clothes awaited them. They talked and laughed as they changed, still coming down from the high of their performance.

The staff had given them a small couch and some chairs to sit in for before and after the performance and the group took full advantage of them once they were all back in casual wear.

The teens wearing blue and pink took the couch, curled up together with the blue teen writing something in a journal and the pink teen watching her do so.

The one in gold sat in a chair, the one in green pressed against her from behind, arms curled loosely around the gold teen’s neck and chin resting on her head.

The red and silver teens were holding hands, sitting next to each other in chairs, the silver teens head coming over to rest on the red teen’s shoulder.

The atmosphere was peaceful, small talk filling the room as the group laughed together.

“I’m telling you, that was our best show yet!”

“Nothing can beat the first.”

“Uhhh, anxiety?”

“... she’s right.”

“See?!”

“Well, I think all of our shows so far have been the best!”

“That isn’t wrong either…”

“I think it’s nice just being able to tell our stories like this.”

The playful conversation was interrupted by a phone beeping. Everyone paused, all heads turning to the blue teen.

Said blue clad teen fished for her phone in the duffel bag on the floor. For a moment, you could hear a small ‘meow,’ but no one looked disturbed.

She found it and checked the notification. She brought her head up and gave everyone a confident stare.

“Queens, I think it’s time for another major performance.”

~~||~~||~~

It was the dark of night. The moon up in the sky, shining a dim light. Everything was calm. It was silent, most of London asleep in their beds.

Suddenly, a helicopter flew overhead. Sirens could be heard as police cars flew down the street.

Where were they going? Towards a casino. A bright golden casino with blinding lights and flashy signs. The building towered over every other one on the street, in the city, in display of dominance. It was garish and burned the eyes, yet the police never faltered, continuing their path. 

Inside, hundreds, possibly thousands, of people crowded the floor. Tables and slot machines were set around the room. The interior was just as bright as the exterior, reflections and chandeliers bouncing light through the area.

A whisper had broken among the crowd. Everyone began murmuring, trying to figure out what exactly was going on. Some people began to make a break for it, turning to exits and pulling family and spouse towards them.

Security guards had appeared in the room. They all began to prowl through the crowds, seemingly searching for something.

No one seemed to notice the figure leaping from rafter to rafter and light to light, the only shadowed area in the room.

But then, someone looked up and cried out. “Up there!”

The figure had crossed the threshold with ease and was now perched on one of the swinging lights, staring down at the crowd. The figure was feminine and had a suitcase held under one arm. She wore what seems to be a black and blue jumpsuit, it extended fully down her legs to meet heeled boots, the sleeves being short and puffy. Her hair was brown and curly, pulled to rest on one side of her head. A bō-staff hung on her back and a revolver was by her side.

The most dominating feature was her mask. It was hard to make out from below, but it was a deep blue. It was shaped like an owl, the top curved and the sides tracing up like horns. A nose piece resembled a beak and black outlines formed the look of feathers.

She surveyed the room with a raised eyebrow, as if challenging someone to come after her. The suitcase was still very noticeable under her arm, the reflecting lights making it more of a target along with the flashing sequins on the thief’s outfit.

Pandemonium broke out. The guards let out roars of defiance and called into their walkie-talkies as they pushed through the compact crowd. Said crowd had begun to panic at the sight of the thief.

The thief herself simply hummed in what seemed to be amusement or concentration as she turned back to her path. Once everyone looked away, she dropped the suitcase, leaving it behind on the light. She then continued to leap, making her way skillfully along the lights, heading for the other side of the long room.

As she moved, a voice buzzed in her ears.

“Well, I’d say you definitely grabbed their attention, Survivor!” The voice tittered.

“Thank you, Ghost.” The now-named Survivor spoke, keeping a steady pace. “You should all be able to make your escape now.”

“Already did!” Ghost replied with a chuckle. “Royal’s with me too!”

Royal’s cool and calm voice joined in. “That’s right.” And then, Survivor could practically hear the other thief’s eyebrow raise. “And I thought this was a distraction, not showing off?”

Survivor shrugged. “You never said how flashy I had to make it. And I would say this is tame compared to other stunts I’ve seen all of us do.”

A new voice barked out a laugh. “She’s got a point there!”

“Hound, dear, we have guards approaching, please be quiet for a moment.”

“Verdammt. Sorry, Heart.”

“Hound, Heart, your exit is right up ahead! Mona, you should be able to make it through that opening to your left. Courtier, Royal, and Ghost are all out!”

“Thank you for the assistance, Siren!” Courtier’s almost annoying voice pierced Survivor’s ears. She did her best to ignore it.

“We’re all out! Survivor, get out of there!” A high pitched voice, that Survivor recognized as Mona, replied.

“I’m almost to the stairs!” Survivor notified, making another jump to a light. She could see the flight of stairs that could lead her to the exit of the Casino. An exit was through that path, Survivor simply had to trek it. And if she jumped off the next light, she could easily land on the platform.

“Survivor, how about we get coffee after all of this is done?” Siren suddenly asked gently. The others were all silent.

“Coffee sounds wonderful, mi amor. It’s a date, and I promise you I will make it.” Survivor murmured back, eyes softening as she landed on the top of the stairs leading to the exit.

“Ha, gay!” Hound and Ghost both spoke at the same time. But before anyone could make a response, Siren called out.

“Survivor, shadow dead ahead!”

The sudden cry had Survivor straightening immediately. She reached unconsciously for her staff as she noticed the enemy pointed out to her. Sure enough, a newcomer had emerged from the door.

It only looked human at a glance. For after half a second of looking at it, the shadow seemed to shift. It became bulkier and seemed to slump over slightly. It still wore a suit, but you could see no skin, only black where exposed skin once was. A mask with glowing yellow eyes stared back at Survivor.

Well, if the shadows wanted to block her escape, they would have to try their best. Survivor had a date to get to, after all.

Survivor sprinted towards the enemy, much to their clear surprise. She leapt up and landed on it’s shoulders. She reached down and grabbed the mask in her hand and gave it a sharp tug, ripping it away. She leapt away afterwards and watched as the shadow melted into a pile of darkness before re-emerging as something far more monstrous than before.

It’s lower half was a teal metal and stretched out, similar to a snake but far more blocky. Two hands formed from its lower half, holding it up. It’s top half was black and white with the head of a bull.

“Survivor, that shadow’s strong!” Siren’s voice suddenly turned into an urgent yelp. “Heads up!”

The shadow let out a thunderous roar and Survivor was quickly flipping backwards as it launched an attack that spread fire wide across the floor. Survivor stood at the edge of the flames, watching the shadow closely.

Then, she reached up and grabbed her mask. She ripped it away and blue flames followed, a gust of wind blowing away the shadow’s fire. The blue flames shifted and morphed in a matter of seconds, drawing upwards to form a figure behind Survivor.

“Athena!” Survivor bellowed out.

The flames faded to drift around Survivor’s feet. The figure behind her was in full view now.

She was giant and wore billowing robes. A giant spear was in her right hand. In her left was a giant shield, far larger than Survivor herself, imprinted with the face of a woman with snake hair. A golden helmet was hiding her face, eyes glowing a bright light behind it. Two owls flew and drifted around her, watching the enemy with naturally wide eyes.

Athena was intimidating. Her unseen, but glowing eyes casting an eerie glow. Her spear slammed against the floor several times before she pointed it at the shadow in challenge. The owls’ movements grew faster. The picture on her shield seemed to come to life, woman screeching and snakes hissing.

The monster in front of them roared at the new challenger. It reared back and prepared to launch an attack.

But Survivor and Athena were faster.

Survivor pulled the bō-staff off her back and leapt forward, slamming it into the side of the shadow’s head. The shadow roared and reached up to grab at Survivor. She kicked off it’s wide chest, flying away from the hands.

“Freidyne!” Survivor called while in the air.

Athena heard her summoner’s call and raised her spear. She thrust it towards the shadow and a dome of blue energy surrounded the shadow before it burst into a brilliant explosion.

The shadow groaned with pain and was hunched over, but still standing. Survivor landed on the ground and in a flash, held out a revolver. A simple bang sent the shadow to the ground, bursting into shadows once again, this time vanishing.

Athena and Survivor turned to each other and gave a bow, thanking each other for the assistance. Then Athena vanished into blue flames that reformed into Survivor’s mask.

“Enemy down! Nice job, babe!” Siren trilled happily. Survivor flushed happily at the praise, one of her hands going to flap back and forth.

“That’s our leader!” Ghost cried out with glee.

“Hey, Ghost! Bet I could beat a high leveled shadow like that faster than you could!” Hound teased, instigating a fight.

“Like hell! I could beat it in seconds, you’d need Heart to come heal your ass!”

“Like you wouldn’t need healing!”

Then, Royal spoke up, pretending like the duo couldn’t hear her. “Dios bueno… This is what we put up with, Heart.”

Heart couldn’t hold back her laughter, ruining the mock seriousness as she replied. “Trust me, Royal, I know how chaotic our girlfriends are.”

“Chaotic? I’ve seen Ghost and Hound at their worst!” Mona griped. As the two supposedly chaotic thieves began voicing their complaints, Mona turned his attention back to Survivor. “Nice job, Survivor! Not everyone can beat a high-leveled shadow like that.”

But Mona’s voice was drowned out by the ensuing banter that came from the other five members of their group. Mona’s attention was diverted back to that and Survivor could hear Courtier let out a sigh and laugh as he listened in.

Survivor had paused in her escape, savoring her teammates' banter. Siren had noticeably lowered the volume a bit for Survivor, something that warmed the leader’s heart. In fact, the banter itself was calming, Survivor tilted her head back and took a deep breath, and for a moment, she sounded out the bright flashing casino around her and focused on their voices.

It could very well be the last time she would hear her thieves’ voices.

“Survivor, watch out!”

The thief snapped to attention and spun on her heel.

An enemy Survivor hadn’t noticed sprinted towards her with a baton that flowed with electricity. Survivor let out a frustrated grunt as she quickly flipped backwards, away from the weapon. The shadow let out a distorted cry of frustration as Survivor kicked off the ground again, leaping backwards to a different level up above.

Survivor landed in a kneeling position on the balcony, frowning down at the enemy.

“There’s another escape route behind you!”

Survivor turned around in confusion. Sure enough, there was a door with stairs. Survivor chuckled happily and quickly rushed through it.

The casino’s hallways were far darker and grittier than its golden and flashy outside. Metal and dark, it seemed to stretch on forever, but Survivor easily noticed stairs at the end of the hall.

As she took a step forward, a guard came rushing down a hallway. Survivor quickly ducked behind a crate in a flash of shadows. She peered around the crate as the guard vanished around a different corner.

Survivor maneuvered down the hall, avoiding more guards as she eventually reached the stairs. She promptly dashed up them to the next hallway, this one thankfully shorter.

There was a glass wall to the right along with a door and a hallway branching off. Guards burst through that door and Survivor quickly ducked behind the wall.

Survivor let them pass before inching forward to peer through the glass. It was the security room. And it was clear that all of the occupants were panicking, people scrambling with papers and typing hurriedly at keyboards. A giant monitor of the locations in the Casino showed no signs of any of the thieves.

“Find her!” Their superior roared. Survivor hummed at the shout and quickly dashed off, heading up the stairs as Siren directed.

She heard feet behind her and knew she had been spotted. She wasn’t worried though. It was the final stretch, and she trusted Siren to get her out.

Survivor exited the door and half slammed into the railing, managing to stop herself before she tipped over. Across the railing was a giant window. There was no other escape route.

“The window is the only way?”

“I’m sorry, Survivor! But the bottom floor is closed off due to the chaos!” Siren answered nervously.

“Can you make it?” It was Heart who asked.

“Well, I think we can agree I’ve survived worse, yes?” Survivor asked with a tilt of her head, just as the guards burst through the opening behind her.

They let out cries of surprise and triumph upon seeing their target so close. The blue masked thief simply blinked, watching them closely.

The guards raised their guns. They felt confidence surge through them. They had the high ground here. There was nowhere else for the thief to go.

But then, Survivor took off. She kept balanced perfectly on the railing as she ran along it. The guards yelled out in surprise and began firing off bullets. They ricocheted off railings and walls, flying past Survivor, but none of them hit.

Then, at the end of the platform, Survivor leapt.

The window shattered into shards around her and Survivor smiled as the moonlight beamed upon her face.

“Well, she had a point. She’s survived worse than a jump from a window.” Mona was probably shaking his head.

“And she calls us the show offs!” Ghost cackled.

“Well, it’s true she’s more down to earth than some of us, but she definitely can still pull extreme stunts when she wants to.” Royal herself was chuckling as she spoke.

“Pulling stunts without me!” Hound tsked jokingly in the background. “Greedy Bücherwurm. Share the spotlight!”

“Dear, you’re usually the one stealing the spotlight. You or Ghost. Let Survivor have this.” Heart teased right back, earning a laugh from Hound.

Survivor landed on one knee with a flourish, glass chips falling around her. She took a deep relieved breath, the adrenaline still burning strong in her veins.

But before Survivor could do anything other than fully stand, what felt like thousands of bright lights flashed on.

The lights pierced Survivor’s eyes, causing her head to start pounding at the sudden burst.

Rows upon rows of police officers stood in front of Survivor, heavy duty gear in hand. It was almost like the whole police force had arrived.

A horrified gasp came from Siren, she was just as caught off guard. The others had gone silent. Even the officers in front of Survivor seemed a little taken aback. But suddenly, everything burst into noise. The officers all let out cries and commands as they moved to rush Survivor.

“Get out of there, now!” Siren cried. The other thieves quickly joined in. The noise made Survivor’s aching head pound worse and for a moment, she thought her mind and body would give out on her, the constant noise and lights pressing viciously against her skull. But Survivor’s body moved instinctively, following Siren’s terrified command.

Survivor raced down the sidewalk, heading for a nearby fire escape. As the officers caught up with her, she jumped up and grabbed onto the bars, beginning to pull herself up.

The officers pooled below her, furious cries following her escape.

But in everything her mind was trying to process, Survivor didn’t hear another warning.

“ABOVE YOU!”

The butt of a gun slammed into Cathy’s head. Her grip loosened, the new pain and flashing stars that caught her vision bringing an even worse pain than before.

Cathy couldn't recover, the old mental pain of all her senses and the new physical pain of the hit taking every ounce of fight from her body. She hit the ground with a sickening thud.

As her head slammed against the solid concrete, Survivor heard screaming.

“Bücherwurm! Verschwinde von dort!”

“Merde! Merde! ils vont la capturer!”

“Mija! Huir!”

“I don’t— I can’t—!”

“What?! There’s no way they got her!”

“They caught her…?”

“CATH—!”

As quickly as they came, the voices vanished. The line of communication had been cut. Survivor felt too dizzy to fully notice.

The lights still burned her vision as she groaned, trying to struggle against the dozens of hands pinning her to the floor. She could feel every rock and hand pressing against her body and she could hear her rapid heartbeat in her ears. She wiggled and tried to push back but they only pushed back harder. Concrete dug into her skin and Survivor reluctantly surrendered, going limp.

There was no escape.

The head officer leaned over to look her in the eyes, past her mask. He scoffed, eyebrow quirking up in what almost seemed to be disgust. “A child is the leader of the infamous Phantom Thieves?” Then he knelt down and picked up her head by the hair to look her in the eyes, eliciting a sharp breath from the trapped teenager. “You have your teammate to thank for all of this. They sold you out, y’know.”

With that, her head was dropped unceremoniously back to floor as the officer turned and stalked away.

Leaving the other officers to cuff Survivor.

~~||~~||~~

Survivor had no idea how much time passed after that, everything going in a blur.

The next thing she felt was pain. Pain that forced her to open her eyes again.

Gone was her thief attire. A grey school uniform replaced it. She had a grey uniform jacket and black skirt. A blue hoodie was under the jacket, giving it a personal touch.

But her clothes weren’t the important part of her situation.

She was in an interrogation room. A metal table in front of her and she was handcuffed to a metal chair. Two interrogators were in the room. One stood menacingly by the door while the other towered over her. Bruises and cuts covered her head to toe and Survivor could feel a headache pounding in her skull, still there from the flashing lights, yelling, and earlier pain.

“No more sleeping.” The guard snarled. “Don’t think we’ll go easy on you cause you’re a teenaged girl. Give it the hell up, bitch!”

Then his foot lashed out, catching her in the chest.

Survivor cried out as both her body and the chair went flying backwards. Survivor was left on the ground, gasping and curling up in pain, her movement restricted.

“I don’t—!”

Before she could finish her protest, the officer had reached her again. His foot pressed down on her shoulder, causing her to grit her teeth in pain.

“You don’t want another shot, do you?” He asked, foot pulling away.

Before she could fully recover, the officer gave her a sharp kick in the ribs and stomach that left Survivor wheezing for breath. She glanced up at the officer and noticed the flashing red of the camera in the corner.

The officer noticed her glance and glared at her. “The camera won’t help you. Thinking it could be used for video evidence?”

Survivor coughed before managing to speak. “Not at all, sir.” She rasped out.

The officer hummed. “Good. You aren’t a dumbass then. You’re pretty quiet too. Well that’s fine… we have all the time in the world!” Another kick to her stomach that hurt even worse than before, leaving her coughing harshly and spitting.

The officer tsked as he grabbed a clipboard from his partner. He glanced over the contents, reading aloud.

“Obstruction of justice, blackmail, defamation, possession of weapons. Manslaughter too, yeah? That's a bunch of crimes led by a punk bitch like you. And you looked to be enjoying every second of it. Fun times for a teenager, yeah?”

Survivor glanced to the ground. Enjoying? She couldn’t remember anything… had she really enjoyed doing all of those crimes?

The officer simply tilted his head. His partner walked up to the injured thief and undid the handcuffs.

Survivor let out a breath of relief once the feeling of metal was gone, rolling her wrists to subside the lingering pain. But both officers quickly picked her up by the arms and hauled her backwards. She hit the floor harshly, now in a sitting up position.

The officer leaned down next to her and held out the clipboard.

“Sign here.” He said simply. “It’s a confession.”

Survivor stared at the clipboard for a moment before slowly reaching up to take the board. Survivor wanted to defy and resist. She wanted to knock the clipboard out of his hands and find some path of escaping. But everything hurt at this point, who knew what kind of drugs they gave her, and there was no way she could get past the officers.

So she had to submit.

As the officer moved to hand her the pen, he gripped her shoulder harshly. “Don’t expect to get out of here in one piece.” He growled.

Survivor glared back in defiance as she took the pen. Then, she carefully and painfully scrawled out her real name.

Catherine Parr.

The officer looked intrigued at the name. “A thief with the same name as a queen, huh? Hope this is real, brat.” Having the information he needed, Cathy’s interrogator turned around and went to the door. “Enjoy juvie.”

Both officers vanished through the metal door. The danger gone, Cathy let herself relax against the floor. The cold felt nice and numbing against her bruises. Everything happened so fast, yet time suddenly seemed to crawl.

Everything was still blurry, so Cathy closed her eyes, taking deep breaths. Her nails went up to grasp at her scalp.

What happened?

And why couldn’t she remember?

~~||~~||~~

A detective made his way down the long, bland hallway. He had fiery red hair and looked young, probably in his twenties or thirties. He stood tall and proud, wearing a business suit and holding a suitcase in hand.

The detective was heading for an interrogation room hidden away for serious criminals.

He was on a mission. A mission to figure out the Phantom Thieves.

He was met with officers in front of the interrogation room door. They straightened upon seeing him.

“Felix Griffin.” The officer drawled. “Sorry to tell you but this isn’t your case anymore.”

The detective, now known as Felix, glared back. “What the bloody hell are you talking about?” He asked gruffly.

But before the officer could reply, a second detective walked up. “Griffin, the director is on call for you.” The detective looked annoyed. “Answer and stop being such a damn inconvenience.”

Felix scowled at him but his phone buzzed. He answered and pressed the phone to his ear. “I thought I told you to stay out of the way?” An older, male voice spoke.

“Maybe you did, sir.” Felix huffed. “But this is my case. And I deserve an interrogation.”

Felix could hear the director’s eyes roll. “I called because I had a feeling this would happen.”

“It’s my case. I get to confirm what I need to, and I’m not entirely convinced just yet.” Felix retorted. He glanced at the officers around him with a glare.

The director paused. “Tch. You’re a steady man, Griffin. Don’t screw this up, although… I’m not expecting much to begin with.”

Felix glanced up from the phone at that, looking to the officers. “I got permission, you can let me through now.”

“Proof?” The officer asked, eyebrow raised. Felix handed over the phone in response.

The officer’s eyes narrowed as he listened. “What, but sir—? Fine, yes, I understand.” Then he tilted his head and the two guards seemed to get the message, heading into the interrogation room. “Good day to you as well, sir.” The officer glanced up at Felix after ending the call. “We can’t let you in for long. We don’t know her methods yet, making her a danger.”

Felix growled a bit at that but agreed. “Fine, just let me in.”

The officer nodded as his two guards came walking out of the interrogation room. The officer tilted his head to Felix one last time before walking off with one of the guards, leaving only one standing outside the door.

Felix paused in front of the door before pushing it open.

The officers had pulled Cathy back up to sit in the metal chair at the table. She wasn’t cuffed and sat half slumped over the table, head held in her hands and nails grasping weakly at her scalp. She was muttering something under her breath and rocking back and forth.

“Catalina… Anne… Jane… Anna… Mona… Kat…” It was a repeated chant.

“So it really is you…” Felix spoke up, interrupting the whispers.

Cathy’s fogged gaze flickered up to Felix. She didn’t reply. Felix hummed and glanced around the room.

His eyes narrowed as he noticed the syringe on the floor. “What were those bloody assholes thinking?!” He hissed as he placed his suitcase on the table. Felix snapped his fingers to get Cathy’s attention. “Oi, I need some answers kid. Can you hear me, Parr?”

Cathy blinked and frowned at him. “Yeah, detective.”

“Good.” He took a seat and tried to look Cathy in the eyes, but her gaze kept to his forehead. Griffin didn’t bother after that, he knew how sensitive Cathy was to eye contact even in the little time he knew her. “Jesus. So all this time, you were the leader of the Phantom Thieves. Right under my nose too.”

Cathy didn’t reply and for a moment, Felix honestly thought she was going to either pass out or throw up. But she simply stared at the table.

“Come on, kid.” Felix spoke, snapping his fingers again, making Cathy wince and glance at him again with a huff. “I need you to tell me everything. I can’t stop what these guys are gonna do.” Felix and Cathy both glanced at the syringe and the many bruises covering Cathy’s body. “That’s why I need you to give me the truth, Parr. We don’t have much time to do it either… probably an hour, hour and a half tops. So I really need you to talk with me, okay?” The gruff detective gave Cathy a determined glare.

“Alright. I’ll tell you what I can.” Cathy slowly muttered, still struggling to find her memories.

After getting the agreement, Felix began firing questions. “What were you trying to accomplish? Why cause such a major incident?” He leaned back, crossing his arms. “I already doubted the claims of it being just some prank right from the very start. But I couldn’t find much evidence… your methods? Those are unknown. And not just to me either.”

Cathy stared at Felix for a moment before tilting her head. “I’m not surprised you couldn’t. It wasn’t meant to be known.”

Felix frowned at her before coldly responding. “This ain’t about evidence, kid. I’m here to get answers for myself.”

Cathy looked intrigued by this. “So you’re interrogating me out of curiosity?”

“Easy way to put it.” Felix barked out a laugh before leaning forward again. “You’re coherent enough to tell me the tale. So… when exactly did you find that ‘other world?’ And what about your ‘changes of heart?’ How are those accomplished? Tell me everything, Parr. From the very beginning.”

Cathy’s brain pounded. The beating and drugs not having faded. The onslaught of questions Felix threw at her wasn’t helping either. She just wanted all of this, every feeling to stop. Her nails dug deeper into her scalp as she struggled to both dull the pain and remember.

Then… there was a sudden clarity. It was as if time around Cathy had stopped. Her pain dulled and she took a deep breath as she glanced around her.

The sound of a serene piano replaced the throbbing headache. Cathy glanced up to see a sparkling blue butterfly, flitting past her.

An unknown voice accompanied it. “You are held captive… prisoner of fate to a future that has been sealed in advance. This is truly an unjust game… your chances of winning are almost none.” Cathy tensed at the dark meaning the soothing voice spoke of.

But the voice continued, softening. “But if my voice is reaching you, there may yet be a possibility open…” the voice seemed to become sadder as it continued. “I beg you. Please… overcome this game and save the world…”

“How…” Cathy rasped out, eyes trailing the butterfly, which still floated in the air, flapping it’s sapphire and velvet blue wings. “How do I…?”

“The key to your victory lies within the memories of your bonds. The truth you and your friends grasped.”

“But I can’t remember…” Cathy felt frustration well within her. “I can’t remember anything!”

“You will…” The voice calmed her almost immediately. But Cathy hardly thought about how strange it was. Something in this voice comforted her. “It all began that day… when the game was started almost half a year ago.” The voice’s emotions mixed to a pleading sadness. “Please… for the sake of your world's future, as well as your own future… you must remember.”

The voice faded away and the butterfly flapped its wings one last time. It was as if a spell was broken, allowing Cathy to see clearly again.

And just like that, Catherine Parr found herself remembering.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Verdammt = damn  
> Dios bueno = good god  
> Bücherwurm = bookworm  
> Verschwinde von dort = get the hell out of there  
> ils vont la capturer = they’re going to capture her  
> Mija = goddaughter  
> Huir = run away/escape
> 
> ——————————
> 
> HERE WE GO, P5 AU!
> 
> I have most of the major story outlined, its more minor stuff I don’t have entirely planned. But hopefully, it will all work out as I go along and as a I write, I may get more ideas so we’ll see how it goes.
> 
> ——————————
> 
> Links:  
> Monster Survivor fought: https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/0/05/MolochNINE.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20110617124924


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A thief arrives in London.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: forced relationship, sexual harassment, false arrest

It was early April and on this day in London, it was cloudy. But people still made their way through the streets and rode the tube. The tube was crowded, but not too crowded, small spaces still left open but many people talking and chattering, creating loud noise.

Due to the loud talking, you couldn’t hear a faint clicking noise. In the corner, there was a teenager.

It was Catherine Parr. Clad in a deep blue turtleneck and black pants, her hairstyle the same, curly hair pulled to one side, and she wore blue headphones over her ears. A duffle bag rested at her feet and on her lap was an open notebook. In her hands was a blue fidget cube and a silver pen. She was writing in the notebook and clicking at the cube, keeping her head down and avoiding everyone’s gazes.

She was on her way to London from a rural town. And it was clear she would rather be back in that town than the loud subway. Hunched in on herself, headphones keeping the noise out, and focusing on her objects in hand.

Cathy glanced up at one point and noticed a small screen playing a news report. She pulled her headphones down around her neck to listen, curiosity taking over. The noise was loud, but for a moment it was tolerable.

“Yet another car crash has occurred. This time, a bus driving on the busy sidewalk, with people still on board! Incidents like this have been increasing lately and police have begun looking into it.”

The second reporter continued once her co-worker was done. “The lead investigator for this case is detective Felix Griffin. Griffin has become rather famous as of late, making television appearances and solving several amazing cases. Onto other news, Henry Tudor, freshly graduated out of high school, is soon to be taking over his father’s company—.”

Cathy inhaled sharply at the name. Her clicking faltered for a moment before becoming harder pressed as her hands clenched around both pen and cube. She pulled her headphones back up to her ears, blocking everything out as she returned to her sanctuary of writing.

Soon, after calming down, Cathy put her pen down and picked up her phone, glancing to see if she had any messages from friends of family.

None. But she wasn’t very surprised. She was an outcast to her hometown. It wasn’t like she had many friends in the first place. Her hometown was rather rural, everyone knowing each other, and most students thought of her as the ‘weird autistic kid.’ But they mostly never bothered her about it and Cathy tried to ignore their words.

The friends she did have? They all left the second they heard of her assault charge. Her parents had practically disowned her. Her mother kept giving her sad and worried glances, but just like her father, she didn’t say a word.

Now, she was in London. Going to live with a godfamily she hadn’t seen in several years and live out a year’s probation.

As much as you would think the opposite, Cathy couldn’t wait to go back to her hometown. Yes, everyone was against her. But… It was a familiar place. And Cathy disliked change.

Suddenly, Cathy noticed something. An app was on her phone.

A glowing red app. Black markings formed an eye, staring right back at Cathy. 

Creepy. But Cathy wasn’t very affected by the design. The creepy thing was that Cathy knew she hadn’t downloaded the app.

She simply let out a contemplative hum as she moved to delete it.

But before she could… something happened.

The crowded train slowed down to a stop. People talking to each other were stuck with open mouths and smiles. A man yelling at someone was frozen mid shout. A person dropping something was stuck in the middle of bending down. A couple was locked in a kiss.

“What?” Cathy whispered, pulling her headphones down once again as she took in the scene. He notebook had slipped from her lap, pen and fidget cube falling to the bench on either side of her.

Cathy stood up and looked around in shock. As she did, blue flames burst into being at the end of the car. Cathy stared wide-eyed as it formed a figure. You couldn’t make out its features, but you could see a golden helmet on the flame’s ‘head,’ the slits glowing a bright light where eyes should be.

Cathy couldn’t look away. “What… the hell are you?” She whispered to herself. The figure made no response, either not speaking, or too far down the car for Cathy to hear.

But as quickly as it appeared, it vanished. In half a second, time was back to normal. And people were staring at her.

Cathy flinched at the stares and the sudden, unexpected burst of loud noise. She quickly flipped her headphones back up to cover most of the noise and picked up her items, hiding in the corner once again.

But Cathy couldn’t take her mind off what had just happened. She put her notebook and pen away, focusing on the cube and her racing thoughts.

What was the being of flames? Why was it her who witnessed the event while everyone else was frozen? Was it just some hallucination? What did it all mean?

And why did the figure feel like an old friend?

~~||~~||~~

The Aragon residence wasn’t very difficult to find. Cathy had been given the address on a slip of paper and she simply plugged it into her gps app. After several minutes of walking she found the house. It was two storied and looked similar to the rest of the house on the streets.

She double checked the address before knocking on the door, messing worriedly with her fidget cube. She had put everything else, even her headphones, back into her bag.

It took a minute or two for the door to open, but when it did, a very familiar face was on the other side. A familiar face she hadn’t seen in years.

Catalina.

Her childhood friend who felt more like an actual sister than a godsister. She looked the same, only older and far more tired. She still had her love for yellow and gold, it seemed, wearing a yellow t-shirt and black-highlighted pants.

They stared at each other for a moment, wide eyed, before a voice called out. “Catalina, dear? Who’s at the door?”

Isabella appeared next to Catalina, her eyes lighting up upon seeing Cathy. “Catherine! It’s so lovely to see you! Adelante, adelante!”

Cathy was quickly ushered into the house. She stood in the doorway, glancing around. In the time she had looked away, Catalina had vanished.

But she didn’t have time to ponder that. Isabella began questioning her, asking how her parents were doing and even about what exactly happened leading to her arrest.

“When I heard about your arrest, I was in shock! What exactly happened?”

Cathy cringed at the question and quickly tried to deflect. “Wrong place at the wrong time.” She pressed a button on the cube a little harder than necessary.

“Well, one year and then you’ll be back home, safe and sound.”

Cathy didn’t reply to that. With how her hometown feared her, Cathy figured the rest of her life was doomed to be hated, feared, and outcast. Safe and sound wasn’t exactly how Cathy saw it.

Isabella clearly noticed that Cathy wasn’t going to reply and quickly took her into the living room. Ferdinand sat in an armchair. He glanced up upon hearing the footsteps.

“I figured you were supposed to arrive today. I couldn’t remember if it was today or tomorrow...” He said in place of a greeting.

“I’m going to go and finish dinner.” Isabella said, sitting Cathy down in another chair. The duffel bag rested by the teen’s feet.

“Well, how was your trip?” Ferdinand asked after Isabella left.

“Busy.” Cathy said simply. It was the truth after all. “And loud.”

“Yes, well. The subway can be like that.” Ferdinand agreed, setting his book aside. “How are your parents?”

“Fine…” Cathy huffed out, keeping her head lowered.

It was quiet for a moment before Ferdinand continued with something else. “I was given the details of your arrest. I have to say, I never thought you of all people would be arrested. Sweet kid, always quiet.”

Cathy tensed at the mention of her arrest. Her clicking stalled for a moment and she gave a quick glance to Ferdinand’s face before looking away.

“Try to look at me when I’m speaking, Catherine.” Ferdinand said. It sounded nice, but was a veiled order. “And put that silly toy away.”

“Yes, sir.” Cathy huffed, she hesitantly slipped the cube away into her bag.

Ferdinand nodded his approval before continuing on the topic of her arrest. “You tried to protect someone and got kicked out for it.” Ferdinand tsked. “You really should learn to keep to yourself and move along.”

Cathy clenched her fists, taking deep breaths to keep herself calm. She didn’t want to make things worse for herself by lashing out. She also wasn’t going to explain that it was her own ex-boyfriend, the man she thought she loved, who had been the attacker.

Before anyone could say anything, Catalina reappeared. “Father, may I show Catherine to her room?”

Ferdinand fixes his daughter with a stare. After a moment, he nodded. “Muy bien!” Then he glanced back to Cathy. “We’ll discuss some rules later.”

Cathy hid her relief as she quickly gave Ferdinand a nod, grabbed her bag, and followed after Catalina. She didn’t know if the interruption had been on purpose or not, but either way, Cathy was thankful.

The interaction with her godparents was short, but Cathy was already dreading the year. If it was like that all the time, then Cathy was in for hell.

Catalina silently led Cathy up the stairs. The blue clad teen carefully followed behind, duffel bag on her shoulder and rubbing the end of her sleeve in the palm of her free hand.

They reached a rather plain room, set up with a desk and bed along with other basic furniture. A few small boxes of Cathy’s other items were tucked away in the corner.

Before Cathy could decide whether or not she wanted to talk to Catalina, her godsister seemed to decide for her.

“I’ll come get you for dinner later.” At the door, Catalina paused, giving Cathy a small glance. “It’s nice to see you again, Catherine. And I’m sorry about what happened to you. Defending someone should never be treated as wrong.”

And then, Catalina vanished from the room, leaving Cathy to unpack and think over everything that had happened.

The later dinner with the Aragon’s had been painful. Ferdinand announced the rules, nothing too important, simple curfew and the like. Then, Ferdinand and Isabella tried to make small talk with Cathy, who only gave short answers. Both were clearly frustrated at the lack of response, but didn’t try to press further. Catalina remained quiet throughout it all, but kept a close eye on Cathy, diverting her parents attention when she felt the girl was getting too uncomfortable.

As soon as she finished eating, Cathy escaped away to her room. The day had been draining, more so mentally than physically. So Cathy collapsed on her bed almost immediately.

But her body wouldn’t let her sleep. Instead, she fell into the memories of what had led to her probation. The memories brought back by her godparents’ earlier questions.

~~||~~||~~

It occurred several days, maybe weeks, ago.

It had just turned dark, the sunlight finally vanishing behind the horizon. Everyone was tucked away in their cozy houses. The rural town was quiet.

Cathy had been making her way home, spending a late evening at the library. A book was in one hand and she had been fidgeting with its pages.

Suddenly, she heard a scream. Cathy’s head shot up and she quickly glanced around. Then, in front of an alley, she spotted a young female, around her age, being harassed by two guys, maybe a year or two older, but still young.

Cathy watched as the two drunk men harassed the girl. She felt frozen, like she had been grabbed in some sort of icy grip.

Cathy didn’t know if she should interfere. But that was when she noticed one of the two figures' face.

Her heart jumped into her throat and she dropped her book. It was Thomas Seymour, her boyfriend.

Thomas only visited the town once a year, for a vacation of sorts with his businessman of a father. They had connected two years ago, when Cathy was a freshman and he was a Junior, and had been together since. Thomas was gentle with her, and was even completely fine with her autism ticks, something people usually found strange (she never noticed his angry glances). He loved her for her and Cathy just knew she had found love.

So why was he here, harassing another teen girl? That sealed her decision.

She swiftly made her way over and called his name. “Thomas?!”

Thomas’s head lifted towards the cry, his friend’s gaze following. Both of their stares were fogged and they were clearly drunk.

“Cathy?” Thomas slurred, staring at her.

“What are you doing?!” Cathy asked, now standing in front of them.

“Just trying to have some fun? What’s so wrong with that?” Thomas asked, as if he was confused by her response.

“Move along.” The other man huffed. “You’ve got nothing to see here.”

They had moved away from the clearly terrified girl. Cathy looked past the two, giving the girl a small nod. She was quickly darting away, vanishing into the darkness further down the road.

“What?!” The unknown man snapped. “You chased her away, just when we were starting to have fun!” He moved a little closer and Cathy immediately backed up, rubbing her sleeve anxiously.

Cathy carefully pulled out her phone, staring at Thomas pleadingly. “Thomas… don’t make me call the cops.”

Thomas was about to retort, but the man next to him barked out a laugh. “Do you know who I am? I’m Henry Tudor! And I’m going to control my father’s company. I’ll be the one ruling this country soon enough!”

He staggered forward, aiming to grab the phone out of Cathy’s hands. But the sober teen was faster than the drunk.

Henry stumbled, his weight pitching forward as he fumbled in the air, having missed his target. Henry hit the cement with a loud thud. Thomas was quickly by his side and helping him up.

Blood was dripping down the side of Henry’s head and he held his face and head where he had hit the cement. A scowl now accompanied his bloodshot eyes.

“You bitch! I’ll sue!” Henry snarled.

Cathy felt herself freezing slightly at the notion. “You can’t… the police will find out the truth…”

“The police listen to me!” Henry slurred. “Who are they gonna believe? A wealthy, future business man? Or a nobody bitch like you?”

Cathy tensed and felt a small, anxious noise escape from the back of her throat. Henry could be right…

“Although… you could make it up to me.” Henry grinned, his drunken brain clearly proud of whatever plan he had. “By being my girlfriend.”

For a moment, Cathy could only stare at his smug smile. She felt panic flutter in her chest. “What?! I’m already dating Thomas!”

Henry’s clouded eyes looked intrigued at that. He glanced over at Thomas. “So this is the freak you’ve mentioned? You don’t mind if I date her, do you?”

Thomas snorted, resting against the wall. “Not at all. I was planning on breaking up with her anyways. She’s too weird for me.”

Cathy could only stare, wide eyed at the ground. Her hands were clenched into fists, her nails drawing blood from the palm of her hands.

“What will it be?” Henry had a triumphant smirk, staring at Cathy. “Jail or a new boyfriend?”

“I…” Cathy wanted to cry and scream. She almost did. But carefully, she managed to answer, breathing sharp and erratic. “I’ll be your girlfriend.”

She didn’t want to ruin her life. What else could she do?

Henry’s grin widened and the drunk man quickly got her number before stumbling off with Thomas. “I’ll be in touch!”

Cathy forgot about the book she had dropped earlier. She went home and cried, her parents being out late left her uninterrupted. She sobbed and punched both her bed and also her arm and leg. She flung a stack of papers and books from her desk, scattering them across the floor.

She screamed for Thomas’s betrayal. She screamed for Henry’s manipulation. She screamed for her future.

The betrayal stung deep. Cathy’s tears burned and her crying was too loud to her own ears.

The next week was absolute hell.

Each day, Henry took her out on a date. He sat too close for her comfort and would touch her when she didn’t want it. Not in a sexual way, but it still hurt and burned her skin. Everytime she tried to stim herself, be it rocking or using a fidget toy, Henry would berate her for it, almost to the point of yelling.

Cathy almost broke down several times, from both overload at Henry’s yelling and unwanted touch, and also from mental pain at everything that was taking place. No one, family or friends, was helping her with Henry, most of her friends didn’t even know yet. Everyone who did, even her parents, were too afraid of the power Henry held to say anything.

The last date of the first week as a supposed ‘couple,’ Henry took Cathy to a café. Her favorite café.

It wasn't her favorite at that moment.

After the date, Henry and Cathy had sat on a bench nearby. Cathy fidgeted, rubbing at her shirt sleeve. Henry pulled her closer, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. Cathy tensed even further, his touch burning. Henry turned to face her and without a word, moved closer to kiss her on her lips.

Through the week, Henry had kissed her on the cheek and head. Cathy submissively allowed it. But a kiss on the lips was the final line for Cathy. The stress and agony of the week finally came crashing down on her.

Cathy slammed her hand on the arm of the bench as she stood up. One of her hands grasped onto her arm and her nails dug into the sleeve, hitting skin. Henry blinked, seemingly unfazed at the outburst.

“I can’t do this anymore!”

“What are you going on about?” Henry huffed, keeping an arm across the back of the bench.

Cathy began to pace in front of the bench, staring at the floor and breathing heavily.

“I don’t love you, Henry!” Cathy spat. “I was happy with Thomas! And then all of this happened! He left me behind so quickly and you are trying to find someone who will fall so easily for you, even through blackmail! It’s not going to be me!”

“I can get you arrested, Catherine.” Henry said in a low tone.

“I don’t care!” Cathy cried, crumpling in on herself. “I can’t… I can’t do this anymore…”

Henry stared at her for a moment. Then, he simply stood and walked away, leaving Cathy alone at the bench, struggling to calm herself. Everything had happened so quickly, and Henry hardly even cared.

“Suit yourself, Parr… Thomas was right, you’re too weird for my tastes anyways.”

That night the police would show up at her door. Her parents were mortified as she was taken away. Cathy remembered the bright lights of the officer’s car lights and the blaring sirens. She had an overload that night. Majority of the officers tried to be accommodating and helped calm Cathy down. Cathy knew they were just doing what they were forced to by a man with too much power. She wanted to blame them but didn’t. No, that blame was all on Henry.

Apparently, he had gone home and injured himself. He had injured himself on purpose to make it seem like Cathy assaulted him, just like what he threatened to press charges for one week ago.

It was funny, really. Catherine Parr, the outspoken queen, had avoided her arrest, and gone on to live with her Thomas. Catherine Parr, the quiet teenager, didn’t avoid arrest, and now she was on probation in place of execution.

~~||~~||~~

Cathy took a deep breath as she opened her eyes again. It still hurt to think about. Thomas. Henry. It all hurt.

Cathy gave a glance to her phone, deciding to check one last time for messages before giving up.

Cathy paused, staring at the screen. The app was back. A familiar bright red and black eye staring right back at her.

Cathy simply deleted it before standing up, grabbing her fidget cube as she went.

She wanted to get some more writing done. So she made her way over to her bag and pulled out her notebook and pen.

Cathy didn’t know how long she spent hunched over the desk. She was lost in her own world. The clicking of her fidget toy, scratching of her pen on paper, and the flooding of her ideas consuming her. Calming her.

Her parents always had to force her to bed, telling her that she would always have time to write later. In the mornings, her mother would always tease her for the dark circles under her eyes and her father would chuckle as he handed over the pot of hot coffee.

That life was gone now, her traitorous mind reminded her. They hate you just like everyone else in that town does. All for something you didn’t do.

Cathy jolted as a hand touched her shoulder. She spun around, standing as she flinched away from the sudden touch.

She found Catalina, staring at her with both surprise and worry. Cathy had dropped everything as she moved. So she began to rub at her sleeve, gaze fixed on Catalina’s shoulder.

“Sorry, I don’t think you could hear me.” Catalina explained gently, taking a few steps back to give Cathy space.

Cathy simply stared. But clearly, Catalina spotted something in her almost blank gaze.

“I wanted to make sure that you‘re doing fine.” Catalina answered the unspoken question. “I know this has been… hard for you.”

Cathy bit back a retort. Catalina didn’t know about what Henry put her through up until her arrest. She only knew that she had tried to defend someone and get arrested for it. But ‘hard for you’ was still fairly accurate.

“I’m… adjusting…” Cathy said simply, picking up her fidget cube. Catalina didn’t mind the clicking.

“Adjusting is always good. And I’m truly glad to see you again, Catherine.”

“Call me Cathy.”

“Hm?” Catalina hummed, glancing fully at the other teen.

“Call me Cathy. Like when we were kids.” Cathy elaborated, looking up from her clicking to Catalina’s shoulder.

Catalina surveyed her for a moment. “Alright… Cathy. I can do that.”

Cathy nodded happily. “Did you need something? Or were you just checking on me?”

“I just…” Catalina hesitated. “I missed you. All these years. And suddenly, you’re back for such a horrible reason. I wanted to make sure that you’re doing alright with the sudden change... That nothing’s wrong.”

“I think…” Cathy felt a little more courage to speak up. “I’m doing as well as I can in the moment.” She took a deep breath, wanting to keep herself calm.

Catalina’s hand twitched, clearly wanting to wrap Cathy into a hug, but Catalina respected the other’s space. “I’m always here if you need to talk.” The, ‘just like when we were younger’ went unspoken but comforted both of them.

“And if I don’t want to talk about any of it?” Cathy asked, almost suspiciously.

“Then you don’t have to.” Catalina replied smoothly. “I know… we haven’t talked in years. We’re different than we were as kids, we don’t know each other like we used to. But you were my sister. And you need someone friendly to be on your side in such a new place.”

Cathy watched Catalina carefully for a moment, as if searching for a different motive. Then, she slowly nodded. “I’m willing to try…”

Catalina looked relieved. “Then we’ll try. My parents… they’re never here, always busy. It’s usually just me around the house. It will be nice to have company.”

“Really?” Cathy asked, slightly confused. She also felt relief that she quickly hid. “But they’ve been here all day…”

“They wanted to greet you. Set up their rules.” Catalina snorted, sending a glance to the door. “Give it a day or two. They’ll be gone again, just like before. Now, you need to sleep.”

“Are you sure I can’t write a little bit longer?” Cathy asked, fixing Catalina with a questioning glance. At Catalina’s crossed arms, Cathy knew she wouldn’t win. It seemed Catalina was just as strong willed as when they were kids. “Alright…”

“Thank you.” Catalina said with a huff of laughter, striding over to the door as Cathy slowly moved under her covers.

Cathy knew it was only a piece of Catalina she had seen. Throughout the rest of the day, Catalina had been distant, almost cold. And Cathy had a feeling she would be seeing both sides just as equally. Although, she didn’t know if it was true yet. Perhaps she’s wrong. But it was fine, that was the most trust someone had shown her in a while.

And from a sister figure she hadn’t seen in years, Cathy cherished it.

“Good dreams, Cathy.” In seconds, Catalina’s walls had come back up. As she left the room, she spoke one more time. “Father has to take you to meet the principal tomorrow.”

Cathy wasn’t too worried about that.

What she was worried about was how many people would see her as weird and try to do things she is uncomfortable with. Her old classmates and teachers had learned most of what she was uncomfortable with. Some tried to avoid doing those things around her. There were always the students who didn’t know, and as much as Cathy despised it, she couldn’t blame them.

But there were others. She had the teacher who kept trying to make her speak and maintain eye contact, and the bullies who would make fun. But it was always minimum, maybe once a month, and there was always another teacher to interfere.

To her, this new school was a wild card. She had no idea what to expect.

But she wanted to leave that worry for the future. Right now, she wanted to sleep for once.

And within seconds, she did.

~~||~~||~~

The first thing Cathy saw was blue. Chains hung from the ceiling. Cathy shot to her feet, panic taking over. This was definitely not where she had fallen asleep. And yet… it also didn’t feel like a dream.

She got a better look standing up, the room she was in was small. She had been laying on a hanging bed chained to the wall. A cell door was in front of her and at some point, her clothes had changed to a black and white striped prison uniform.

She stumbled forward but her foot caught on something. A ball and chain was holding her back. But Cathy managed to pull herself forward to the door. Outside the cell door was a circular room, other cells arranged around it.

She was in a prison.

In the middle of that circular room was a table, a singular light shining down on it. A figure was hunched over the table.

“Where am I? What am I doing here?!” Cathy felt question after question rattle in her brain, but those were the ones she voiced.

Suddenly, two short and child-like figures emerged from either side of her cell door, turning to face her. They were similar, possibly twins. Both had silver hair, one pulled in buns on either side of her head and the other with a long braid. They both wore the same uniform of a deep blue and black uniform that declared their status as wardens. Hats of the same color were perched on their heads.

The one with the buns held a silver rod, the one with a brain held a clipboard. Both had an eyepatch covering one eye, on a different eye from each other.

They stared at Cathy, almost threatening.

Past the girls, the figure at the table looked up. He was bald on the top of his head, grey hair on the back and sides pulled backwards. His ears were long and pointed, staring eyes were wide and bulging. His nose was impossibly long, pointed just like his ears. He wore a black suit and white gloves. A grin was stretched across his face.

Then, the man spoke. His voice was deep and calm.

“Trickster… welcome to my Velvet Room.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations:  
> Adelante = come in  
> Muy bien = very well
> 
> ——————————
> 
> Well... never expect this fast of an update again. I had a really bad headache, and instead of sleeping, my brain decided it wanted to write this 4,500+ worded chapter instead! My brain heavily regrets that decision now. 10/10 would not recommend!
> 
> Also, sorry if Ferdinand and Isabella felt a little rushed... I wasn’t entirely sure what to do with them (besides that fact that they are never home) and I don’t know their true history all that well...
> 
> As for Catalina, I struggled a bit with her. I want her to start closed off, withdrawn from everyone (something we’ll probably see when school time comes around). But I also wanted her to trust Cathy due to their past together... it was a struggle for me to portray well but I think it turned out alright. Catalina wants to make sure Cathy is doing alright in this new environment, and she was a sister to her as kids, I used that to justify Catalina being a little more open with her than others.
> 
> ——————————
> 
> Links:
> 
> Velvet Room Twins:  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/9/9b/P5_Caroline_and_Justine.png/revision/latest?cb=20160820081904
> 
> Strange man (name revealed next chapter):  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/a/a0/Igor_%28Persona_5%29.png/revision/latest?cb=20160819124205


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Survivor rises from the ashes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: violence, blood, mentioned/implied rape

All Cathy could do was stare.

A soft, piano melody had begun playing gently in the background.

“So you finally woke up?” The girl with buns snapped. “It’s about time, Inmate!”

The girl with a braid tilted her head, regarding Cathy carefully. “The you in reality is fast asleep. You are only experiencing this as a dream.”

Cathy glanced at her and was about to ask a question when the girl with buns snapped again. “You’re in the presence of our master! Stand up straight!”

Cathy flinched at the volume, but didn’t reply. Instead, she looked past them to the man.

“Welcome!” The man began speaking, the grin still on his face. “I am delighted to make your acquaintance!”

“What is this place?” Cathy finally asked, voice hardly above a whisper.

The man nodded his head, clearly expecting the question. “This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. It is a room only those bound by a contract may enter.”

“Contract?” Cathy whispered.

“Be quiet and listen, Inmate!” The angry girl declared, the silver rod slamming into the bars, startling Cathy.

“Now, now.” The man hummed. “It is only fair that she has questions.” Then, he proceeded to introduce himself. “I am Igor, the master of this place. Remember it well.”

Igor watched Cathy, who was still staring, closely as he continued.“I summoned you to speak of important matters. Involving your life as well.” He then glanced around the room, a curious look in his eyes. “Still… this is a surprise. The state of this room reflects the state of your own heart. To think a prison would appear as such…”

“So I… see my life as a prison?” Cathy asked, also looking around the room.

Igor chuckled. “Perhaps. But it is your heart, not mine. You would know this better than I do. But I suppose it means that you truly are a ‘prisoner’ of fate… In the future, I can see that ruin awaits you.”

Cathy paled. “Ruin? What are you talking about?” She couldn’t calm herself. “I don’t understand!”

“You will soon enough… but for your first question, the ruin I speak of is the end to everything.” Igor fixed his gaze on her, hands still clasped.

For a moment, Cathy felt overwhelmed. Velvet room… reflection of her heart… the end to everything. It was all being thrown so quickly that Cathy could hardly comprehend it.

“Can it be stopped?” She asked. One thing at a time.

Igor hummed, nodding his head. “There is a means to oppose such a fate. Rehabilitation.”

Cathy blinked in surprise. Rehabilitation?

Igor was quick to elaborate. “You must be rehabilitated. Rehabilitated towards freedom. That is your only means to stop the ruin.” Igor’s grin seemed to get wider and he looked very intrigued by Cathy. “Do you have the resolve to challenge the distortion of the world?”

“Distortion… of the world?” Cathy mumbled, eyes wide.

“You didn’t decline? Hmm, very well, that is enough.”

“What?! But I didn’t—!”

Igor cut her off. “Allow me to observe the path of your rehabilitation.” It seemed there was no room for Cathy to protest.

The two girls, who had turned to face Igor earlier, turned on their heels to face Cathy now.

“Ah, it seems I never introduced the others! Pardon me.” First, he pointed out the one with hair buns. “To your right is Caroline.” Then the one with the braid. “To your left, Justine. They serve as wardens here.”

“Kids?” Cathy questioned, tilting her head as she looked down to the two.

Caroline seemed angered by the question. “Be quiet inmate! We are no kids! We’ll be helping in your rehabilitation, I suggest that you respect us!”

“Ah… sorry.” Cathy apologized.

Caroline fixed her with a glare, continuing where she intended to start. “Try and struggle as you like!”

Then, Justine spoke up, voice just as calm as before. “A warden’s duty is to protect inmates. We are also your collaborators… That is, if you remain obedient.”

Cathy had to admit. These two were fairly intimidating.

Introductions done, Igor spoke again. “I shall explain the roles of these two at another occasion.” Igor rapped his fingers against the desk. “But for now, it seems the night is waning… it is almost time. Take your time to slowly understand this place. We will surely meet again, trickster.”

Cathy still had hundreds of questions. But before she could even open her mouth to speak, Igor pointed to the ceiling. An alarm rang out. Cathy backed away from the bars, looking upwards in surprise.

“Time’s up!” Caroline announced. “Now hurry up and go back to sleep!”

And suddenly, Cathy awoke.

She would go through the day thinking how strange the dream had been. But she chalked it up to just that. A dream. She had been going through stress recently.

But the Velvet Room was no dream.

~~||~~||~~

The morning after the strange dream, Ferdinand took Cathy over to her new school. That was where she met Principal Cromwell, an older man with silver hair. She also met her homeroom teacher, who stood by silently the entire time.

Ferdinand had forced her to put her fidget cube away, so Cathy held onto one of her arms instead, nails digging into skin. She kept her head down under the judgmental stares.

For several minutes, Cromwell and Ferdinand talked and Cathy only paid half attention. Something about keeping Cathy in check outside of school.

“Miss Parr.” Cathy’s head jolted up at the sound of her name and her grip on her arm tightened.

Cromwell was staring at her. “We were the only school willing to take you. I do hope you’ll remember this.”

Cathy didn’t respond for a moment. But the silence and a tap to her arm from Ferdinand forced her to speak. “Yes, sir. I’ll remember.”

Cromwell nodded approvingly. “Your godsister is a Senior and top of her class! I hope you’ll use her as an example.” Cromwell lifted an eyebrow.

Cathy tensed. She had always been top of her class at her old school. But now it was like everyone believed she was dumb and violent due to one false charge.

“Yes sir.” She managed to get out.

And that was that. For another moment, Cromwell and Ferdinand talked, the teacher joining every so often. Until finally, the meeting was over.

Cromwell gave her one last, judging look. “Please, do turn up to class tomorrow.” Then, he nodded his head to Ferdinand. “Have a good day, Mr. Aragon.”

With that, they left. And on the way back to the Aragon’s, Cathy heard reports of a crash on the subway. Ferdinand began complaining about the recent crashes, be it car or subway, and the drivers ‘not remembering what happened.’

What neither of them, or the public, saw was a terrifying sight. A man hunched over the controls of the train, people in the cars behind him screaming as the train sped to a blur. The man’s eyes were entirely white, with a black substance dripping from his eyes, nose, and mouth.

A mental shutdown.

~~||~~||~~

The morning after the visit to school was the actual first day. Cathy woke up and soon forced herself downstairs for coffee and breakfast.

The first thing she noticed was the absence of Ferdinand and Isabella. It looked like Catalina was right. The two were nowhere to be found.

So Cathy simply poured herself a mug of coffee from the warmed coffee pot and poured herself a bowl of cereal, without the milk. Soggy cereal always tasted gross to her, and she almost threw up on one or two occasions before stopping with milk completely.

As Cathy ate, Catalina made her way downstairs. She was already dressed and ready to go. She made her way over to the kitchen doorway, watching Cathy.

“I need to talk to a teacher about an assignment.” Catalina explained. “Will you be alright on your own? The subway will be a little delayed due to yesterday’s crash.”

“I think I know the path.” Cathy said simply, glancing up from her cereal. “I’ll see you later.”

Catalina hummed. “Alright. If you need anything, class wise or not, don’t hesitate to come find me, okay?”

Cathy nodded. “Noted.” Then she looked fully at Catalina. “Thank you.”

Catalina’s gaze softened. “Of course, Cathy. I hope your first day goes well.”

Cathy shrugged, swirling her spoon. “We’ll just have to see.”

And with one last goodbye, Catalina was out the door. Cathy finished her breakfast and soon finished getting ready to go. She had dressed in her school uniform, but instead of the uniform shirt, she wore a blue hoodie underneath.

It was probably half an hour after Catalina left that Cathy left the house, locking the door with the key Ferdinand had given her.

The ride on public transport wasn’t particularly interesting, it was even more crowded than the last time Cathy had been on it. Everyone was heading to school and work. This time, Cathy was forced to stand, bag on her shoulder and headphones dropping the volume around her.

The sea of bodies made Cathy uncomfortable as she tried to distract herself with her fidget cube. She took slow, deep breaths as other people’s bodies pressed against her own.

Cathy decidedly hated public transport.

After getting off, Cathy quickly made her way from the station. She had to walk the rest of the path to school.

About halfway through Cathy’s walk, it started raining. She quickly pressed herself under an overhang to wait and see if it would calm. She watched other students rush past, books and bags held overhead.

It seemed no one else expected the rain either.

A sudden presence next to Cathy had her glancing up. The first thing to catch her eye was pink.

The girl next to her wore a pink jacket over the white school shirt adorned with the school’s emblem. Her hair was long and up in a ponytail, the end dyed a hot pink. A black choker was around her neck, a ‘K’ hanging from it.

Cathy had to admit, the girl looked very beautiful.

But Cathy also noticed bruises. Bruises the girl was clearly trying to hide. Peeking out from her wrist, one on her collarbone.

The girl seemed to notice her curious stare. She turned slightly to face Cathy and her mouth formed a smile. “Hi.” The girl’s voice was rather quiet.

Cathy blinked. She didn’t notice that she had stopped clicking, her full attention now on the girl. “Hello.” She greeted back, just as softly, if not more so.

The girl opened her mouth to speak again, but before she could, there was an interruption.

A car pulled up next to them, and the window rolled down.

It was a man. He wore a tanned suit and had black hair pulled into a low ponytail. He wore an easy smile. But something about his smile made Cathy nervous almost immediately.

“Good morning, Katherine!” The man called. Something about him in general felt off.

“Oh… good morning Mr. Mannox.” The girl, Katherine, spoke back, her voice tinged with anxiety. Cathy glanced at her. The real smile was gone, replaced with a noticeably fake one. This only made Cathy even more suspicious of the man.

Cathy could readily admit she wasn’t good with emotions. She heard people tell her that many times before. Cathy also quickly learned that she saw things differently from other people, including emotions. (Her traitor of a mind once again thought of how weird it was, just like Henry and Thomas said) But Cathy knew that Mannox was being fake with his friendliness and that Katherine was nervous, scared even, around Mannox.

Most importantly, Cathy knew that Mannox was not to be trusted. She took a deep breath, anxiously pressing another button on her cube.

“Do you need a ride?” Mannox asked, that smile still on his face. “This rain came out of nowhere!”

There was a hesitation from Katherine. Cathy was about to give them both an excuse. But before she could, Katherine spoke up. “Yes, thank you.”

Cathy could only watch as Katherine entered the car. Mannox glanced up again to Cathy. “What about you?”

“I’m fine.” Cathy answered quickly. “Thank you for the offer.”

“Suit yourself.” Mannox said simply, shrugging. Then he rolled up the window and drove off.

Cathy got one last look at Katherine, who was staring at the dashboard. There was a look on her face that Cathy couldn’t place.

Before Cathy could think any further on the issue, she heard the sound of running footsteps directly behind her.

Cathy had barely turned around before a green blur came to a stop next to her.

She was shorter than Cathy and wore a green skirt and green t-shirt with the school’s uniform jacket. Her dark hair was pulled up into two buns, the rest trailing down her back. She also had a choker around her neck, this one with a ‘B’ charm.

“Dammit! Merde! I’m gonna kill him!” The newcomer ranted, breathing heavily. One of her hands lashed out, as if hitting some unseen opponent.

Cathy flinched at the volume of the green girl’s voice. But carefully managed to speak up. “Are you alright?”

The girl’s head whipped around to stare at Cathy. She glared. “No, I’m not fine! What, are you gonna rat me out for talking shit about him?”

Cathy cringed back at the unwanted confrontation. The girl seemed to notice something in Cathy’s posture and relaxed slightly.

“Shit, sorry… I’m just really pissed.” Then the girl narrowed her eyes, looking Cathy over. “I can’t say I recognize you.”

“I’m new…” Cathy managed to get out, keeping her head down.

“So that’s why I don’t recognize you… you’re the transfer student.” The girl tilted her head, watching Cathy closely. Then, she nodded, seemingly deciding something as she stuck out her hand for a handshake. “Anne Boleyn, Senior!”

Cathy simply stared at the hand. “Catherine Parr… Junior.”

There was an awkward second before Anne pulled her hand back. But she didn’t seem put off. She simply began to fidget with the charm hanging from her choker, giving Cathy a smirk.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Cathy. It looks like the last queen has shown up!”

Cathy looked very confused. She knew Catalina and now Anne. But there were another three named after the Tudor queens? “The last Queen?”

“Yep, all six of us go to this wonderful school now!” Anne snorted, ‘wonderful school’ being stated very mockingly.

“Bizarre.” Cathy couldn't help but comment.

“I know, five of us were the favorite school gossip. But the final queen too? The rumors are gonna spiral.” Anne chuckled, shaking her head. “There’s a whole lot of drama surrounding us already.”

Cathy winced. She would rather not get involved in the school drama. She just wanted to keep her head down for the year. And being the center of some sort of drama would ruin that wish.

“I’d rather… avoid gossip.” Cathy said in a whisper.

A look crossed Anne’s face but it vanished before Cathy could even hope to decipher it. “Yeah, I can get that. You should be fine. And hey, if you need someone to talk to, I’ll be around.”

Cathy blinked quizzically at Anne. “Really?”

“Yeah!” Anne beamed. “You seem nice, if a bit quiet. But I don’t blame you for that! And uh, sorry if I get too loud. I’ve been told I have a temper too…” Anne rubbed the back of her head giving Cathy a reassuring smile.

Huh, no one had ever really apologized for being too loud before... Faintly, Cathy wondered how long this would last. If Anne learned of her record, how fast would she be gone?

“I… thank you.” Cathy managed to get out. “You were a little loud… but I’m fine.”

“Yeah, sorry.” Anne gave Cathy a regretful looked before she went on to explain. “Mannox just… really pissed me off.” Anne’s face twisted into a scowl. “Everyone already thinks I have a temper and talk a lot… well wait until they hear everything I can say about that asshole!”

Cathy glanced over to where the car had once been. “Can I ask who those two were earlier? You mentioned a Mannox.”

Anne hesitated for a moment before answering. “The girl was my cousin, Katherine Howard.” Anne’s smile at her cousin's name quickly shifted back into a glare. “The asshole who picked her up was Henry Mannox.”

Cathy didn’t notice a familiar black and red app lighting up on her phone, having redownloaded, and almost seeming to open itself. Neither noticed the beep that followed the name.

“Henry Mannox?”

“Yeah, our pervert of a music teacher.” Anne practically snarled, staring at where the car vanished. “If he even thinks about hurting Kat I’m gonna kick his ass in return.”

Oh. Suddenly, a lot of things made sense to Cathy. Why Kat was so nervous. What felt so off about Mannox. Why Anne was so furious.

“She didn’t want to go with him.” Cathy said slowly, carefully surveying Anne.

“She never does.” Anne growled, clenching her fists. “She’s scared of him and is also stuck in his stupid music lessons.”

Cathy didn’t say anything as Anne continued. “That bloody coward runs his own music hall before becoming a teacher and suddenly, everyone is bowing to his will!”

There was another unnoticed beep at the words ‘music hall.’

“Something… was off about him.” Cathy explained carefully. “I just wasn’t sure what.”

“Thank god!” Anne gave Cathy a wide, pleased grin. “Someone else around here gets it! I already like you, new girl!”

Cathy shuffled at the praise, keeping her head down and gaze locked on the fidget cube she still held in hand.

“Hey, why don’t we head onto school?” Anne asked after a moment of surveying Cathy. “We’ll be late if we don’t. We can talk later and I can show you around.”

Cathy’s gaze went back up to Anne. “Yes please… I don’t want to be late.”

“Then come on, this alley is a short cut!” Anne said, stepping into the alley they had been standing next to. Cathy hesitates for only a second before following. Anne seemed nice enough, and Cathy would rather not be late for class.

About halfway through, Cathy suddenly felt dizzy. And clearly, Anne did too.

“Qu'est-ce que…?” Anne mumbled, straightening after the dizzy spell wore off.

Cathy shook her dizziness away. “We should keep going.” She practically whispered, quickly stepping forward. Anne nodded before smoothly leading the way again.

But upon emerging on the other side of the alley… it wasn’t the school they found.

The building in front of them was huge, intimidating. And Cathy recognized it as a music hall. It was bricked, and had several windows. The sky had turned an ominous color and the atmosphere felt darker.

Anne squinted at the music hall. “I know for a fact that there was never a music hall next to the school.”

“The sky…” Cathy pointed out. “I really don’t like this…”

“Yeah… something’s not right here…” Anne muttered. For a moment, both girls stood there. The only sound was Anne’s foot tapping anxiously against the ground.

“What do we do? Turn back?” Cathy asked, the question directed at both herself and Anne. She messed worriedly with the cube in both hands, never taking her eyes off the building.

“I guess…” Anne hesitated. “We go in and hope to god that we didn’t walk into a fucking horror movie.”

Both of them hesitate for another moment before carefully going up the steps. They both knew something was very wrong. They just weren't sure what.

The entrance hall was grand, red carpet and rich furniture.

But the actual hall was even more so. Rows upon rows of seats lit up up by lights. A stage with several instruments and open spaces for more. A podium for a director to stand as well.

“Woah! Look at these!” Anne had made her way over to the instruments. They seemed to be made out of pure gold and shimmered brightly. Cathy trailed after her, watching curiously.

Anne carefully picked up a flute, looking it over with intrigue. “Isn’t this cool?” She asked Cathy, holding it out to the blue clad teen.

“Very cool.” Cathy agreed. She glanced around nervously. “But maybe we should put it back.”

“Yeah, Yeah. Guess you’re right.” Anne agreed easily, moving to put it back.

“Back away form the conductor’s instruments!”

Cathy and Anne both spun around at the new voice. There were two guards. Only, they didn’t look very human. Bulky and hunched over with masks hiding their faces. Bright yellow shone from the eye sockets.

For a moment, Cathy considered that they could be dressed up. But why would guards dress up like that? And why did their showing skin look like shadows…?

“Hey Cathy… remember what I said about a horror movie?” Anne mumbled, paling. She reached the same conclusion as Cathy.

“We have to go!” Cathy said, tugging at Anne’s sleeve to move. Anne was quick to join her, dropping the flute, but they were quickly cut off.

The guards managed to grab them. Cathy and Anne both let out cries of panic and began to struggle. But the guards were strong. Cathy’s bag and cube were lost in the fray, dropped onto the stage.

They were carried down several halls before the guards came to a stop. The entire way, Anne was beating against the guard, trying to get him to let her go. Cathy also struggled to break free of the grip. Both girls demanded to be put down, although Anne was far more vocal about it than Cathy.

Then, they were thrown into a room before the guards quickly left. It looked to be some sort of storage room, boxes scattered and pressed against walls.

“Hey!” Anne was up and sprinting towards the door. It closed the second she reached it and she began banging at it. She began yelling furiously, temper rising.

Cathy curled in on herself, fear and the loud banging making a horrible mixture in her mind. She began rocking herself, eyes squeezed shut.

It took several minutes for Anne’s banging to cease, but Cathy hardly even noticed for a minute after. What she did notice was a gentle touch to her knee. Cathy’s head jolted up to find Anne kneeling in front of her.

“Hey, hey.” Anne kept her hands only to Cathy’s knees as she tried to calm the other girl. “You’re okay. I need you to breathe with me alright? I’m just as scared as you are, but we’re gonna be okay. Can you follow my breathing, Cathy?” Then, Anne began taking deep breaths, holding, and releasing. Shakily, Cathy followed the motion. The repeated gesture and feeling of oxygen reaching her lungs slowly calmed Cathy down.

Anne kept a close eye on Cathy. If the green teen was being honest, something had drawn her to this girl. Maybe she reminded her a bit of Kat, they both had the bookworm energy. Perhaps it was how quiet and anxious Cathy seemed when Anne introduced herself. Maybe she was able to redirect her fear and anger into helping Cathy. Or… maybe it was the fact that Cathy knew nothing of the rumors that followed Anne.

Whatever the case was, Anne just knew they were stuck in this situation together. And whatever happened from here, Anne figured they should at least be on good terms.

“Is there anything else? Are you hurt?”

Cathy shook her head as she tried to sign, but quickly realized that Anne couldn’t understand. She managed to point at her ears. “Loud.” She managed to rasp.

“Merde—!” Immediately, Anne lowered her voice. “Sorry… I just… all of this…”

Cathy nodded her understanding before squeezing her eyes shut with relief. Everything was much more manageable now that the loud sounds weren’t ringing in her head. But the fear was very much still there.

The two sat there for several minutes. Anne never took her hand away from Cathy’s knee. Both of them focused on the touch. They may not know each other well, but it was a grounding point.

“Why?” Cathy finally whispered.

“Why what?” Anne asked, a little confused.

“Why help?” Cathy asked. Anne could have continued screaming. She probably could have found a way out. But instead she was here, trying to help Cathy calm down.

“Hey, I don’t know you that well… we just met about five minutes ago.” Anne gave Cathy a determined grin. “But I’m gonna keep both of us safe, okay Somnolente?”

Cathy blinked at Anne, giving her a confused stare at both the sudden nickname and the comfort.

Anne snickered playfully. “Somnolente! It’s French for sleepy. One of the first things I noticed was how sleepy you looked! If you don’t like it, I can stick with your actual name.”

Cathy felt warmth rise in her chest. Anne was right… they had only met five minutes ago and yet Anne was trying to keep her calm in such a strange and scary situation. She had been banging at the door, but upon noticing Cathy, quickly moved to help her. Cathy wanted to return the favor.

“I like it.” Cathy managed to speak. “... I’ll protect you too.”

Anne blinked. “Somnolente, I’m more worried about you.”

Cathy huffed before compromising. “You’re scared too… we’ll protect each other.”

Anne chuckled before moving to sit in front of Cathy more properly. “I guess possible life-or-death situations really do cause friendships. I never believed it.”

“We’re in a strange situation…” Then, Cathy glanced around the storage room. “There’s definitely no way out?”

Anne took a deep breath, tapping her fingers against her knee. “I already checked. We’re stuck.”

Before either could speak again, there was a noise from behind the door. A distant scream rang out, startling both girls.

“Holy shit...” Anne whispered, staring wide eyed at the door. Cathy hunched in on herself slightly.

Cathy quickly glanced at Anne. “If— when we get out of here… would you still be willing to show me around?”

Anne looked thankful for the distraction. “Of course I would! We can get to know each other past Mannox and this whole mess, too! It would be good to have a friend around…” Anne paused before adding something else, a hopeful look in her eyes. “I just hope I get to see Chaton again… I’ll have to introduce you two.”

Cathy opened her mouth to reply, but before she could speak, the door opened.

A group of four guards were the first to enter the room. Then, a man walked in behind them.

It was the same face Cathy had seen in the car earlier. A cocky grin replaced his fake smile. His hair was the same, but his clothes were very different. A navy robe that was left open, revealing a bare chest and red underwear. Another group of guards followed him.

“What the hell?” Anne muttered. “Mannox?”

“I was surprised to hear that some unwanted guests entered my music hall. The guards had to waste their time to put them in a storage room due to the lack of a better holding place.” Mannox fixed both of them with a contemplative stare. “But then I found out it was just Boleyn and some other brat. Let me guess, here to steal the instruments?”

“What are you going on about? And what are you wearing?!” Anne snapped, staring at Mannox with sheer confusion.

“Stupid, stupid Boleyn.” Mannox shook his head. “I run this music hall, and I can wear what I want.”

“The hell? You teach at a school! Not some grand music hall!”

Cathy could only stare, confusion and shock taking control.

“My students learn here. I teach them and they perform for me and my audience. I call the shots.” Mannox then snapped his fingers.

Two guards each grabbed both of them by the arm and hauled them up. They kept them held up between them, unable to move and forced to look at Mannox.

“Thieves and intruders like you two have no place in my music hall. I should have you killed on the spot.”

“Kill?!” Anne and Cathy both yelped, staring wide eyed at the baton wielding guards and Mannox.

“But… You’re both pretty girls.” Mannox tilted his head, watching them with a grin. “How about this? Become students and be mine, obeying me, or never see outside of this room again.”

“I refuse to be your little plaything.” Anne growled after a moment, glaring at Mannox.

Mannox didn’t seem very surprised. “If only you were more submissive like your cousin.”

Anne’s eyes widened and she lurched forward in the knights’ grasp. “What the fuck are you talking about?!”

“Hmm.” Mannox stared at her for a moment before turning to Cathy.

“Don’t turn your back on me, you son of a bitch!”

Mannox ignored her, directing his next question towards Cathy. “And what about you?”

For a moment, Cathy remembered Henry. She couldn’t do that again.

“Never.” Cathy muttered, giving him a glare. She forced the memories into the back of her mind.

“Hm, that’s a shame then. Both of you are gorgeous.” Mannox turned his back on her to fix Anne with a twisted grin. He snapped his fingers and his two guards began to pull Cathy away from Anne. “Boleyn first, then we’ll deal with her little friend. We need to make an example of what happens to thieves.”

Cathy was now over by the wall and Anne was in the middle of the room, surrounded by guards. As strong as Anne tried to seem, she couldn’t hide the fear in her eyes.

Panic clawed at Cathy’s heart. But not just for her own life. She also panicked for Anne. What was Mannox about to do?

“Do it.” Mannox ordered.

In half a second, a guard’s foot lashed out, catching Anne in the chest. The other guards joined in, batons, hands, and feet slamming into Anne.

Anne had quickly curled into herself, trying to protect her body, and mostly her head, from the brutal attacks. She was trying not to scream, but every time one of the attacks caught her off guard, she let out a cry of pain.

Mannox watched, almost gleefully as Anne was pinned to the ground under the strikes.

Cathy tried to rush forward but the two guards at her side quickly tightened their hold and held her back.

Cathy felt sheer panic. They were hurting Anne. They were going to kill her. The girl who had been trying to keep her calm through all of this while dealing with her own rage and fear. And then, they would do the same to Cathy.

“GET AWAY FROM HER!”

Everyone seemed to pause. Then, the guards shifted to glance at the speaker and Mannox slowly glanced over his shoulder. Anne was taking sharp, pained breaths as she closed her eyes.

Cathy herself seemed surprised by her words and was staring back, wide eyed at everyone. The guards that stood on either side of her tightened their grip on her arms and Cathy flinched.

“What was that?” Mannox muttered, pacing towards Cathy. “I don’t like brats who don’t know their place…”

Cathy tensed but didn’t reply. Mannox lashed out, striking her in the face. The guards held her in place, preventing her from falling.

“Don’t worry. After Boleyn, your death will follow.” Mannox mocked before making his way back over to Anne. The green clad teen opened her eyes and glared at him defiantly.

“Brûle en enfer.” Anne rasped out, before promptly spitting at Mannox’s shoes.

Mannox scowled. He clearly didn’t understand the language, something that irritated him, but the spit on his shoes seemed to anger him even further. He lashed out, delivering a forceful kick to Anne’s stomach. The green teen curled into herself, coughing harshly and for a terrifying moment, Cathy swore she saw blood exit the girl’s mouth.

Mannox pulled his leg back with a malicious smirk, preparing to hit Anne once again. He was enjoying the torture.

Time seemed to freeze, just like it had on the subway. Only this time, there were no blue flames. Instead, it was a blue butterfly, fluttering past.

“This truly is an unjust game…” A female voice accompanied the blue butterfly and whispered into Cathy’s ear. “Your chances of winning are almost none… but if my voice is reaching you… there may yet be a possibility open…”

Cathy wanted that possibility. She wanted to stop Mannox before he killed Anne. She wanted to release the fury locked away in her heart.

And an entirely different voice heeded that will.

“You are going to simply sit and watch?”

A sudden pain spiked in Cathy’s skull. She bit back a cry of pain as the force hit her out of nowhere.

“You fought back before. What is stopping you now? Was that decision to fight a mistake?”

Cathy tried to take deep breaths as sweat rolled down her face, the stabbing pain still present. But somewhere in her mind, Cathy knew that fighting back against Henry was not a mistake. “No...”

“Good… You have great wisdom and strength, Catherine Parr. Will you put it to use or will you let the girl’s life be taken?”

Cathy pushed against the soldiers, but even frozen, their grip held her in place. A small cry of pain escaped her lips as the voice continued.

“You cannot win a war unless you fight back. Your strategy needs will and desire to set it in motion. You need to have strength to earn victory.”

Catherine thrashed as another wave of pain hit her. She bit back a scream. No one seemed to notice her flailing.

“So, shall you find your strength and wisdom to win this battle? Or will you bow to another’s will yet again? A contract with me, or a defeat?”

Something in Cathy’s mind clicked, and the pain faded away. “I refuse… to let this end here!”

“You have chosen the right path indeed.” The voice seemed pleased. “I am thou, thou art I! Thou art willing to find your true wisdom! Now, tear off your mask and reveal the true strength of your mind and soul!”

The pain faded and Cathy stopped thrashing against the guards’ grips. She took deep breaths and slowly brought her head up to stare at the scene in front of her.

The guards were moving to continue their beatings after Mannox’s interruption. Cathy wasn’t going to let it happen.

For all these years, Cathy never found the will to speak out. Something in her mind kept her from doing so. Now? Cathy refused to be quiet. Not when a life was in danger.

She let her life be thrown away by a man with too much damn power. She refused to be chained down by society anymore. Cathy was ready to take her life back, and that started with protecting Anne’s.

“I told you to stop…”

Mannox rolled his eyes as he turned back to Cathy. “So you’re willing to die first, that much? Guards! Forget Boleyn, and make sure this one dies painfully.”

“What the hell are you doing?!” Anne rasped out, coughing as she looked to Cathy.

Cathy didn’t respond, glaring at Mannox. She was quickly thrown forward to the ground. The guards surrounded her, raising batons, legs, and fists. They were fully ready to beat her to death.

Just as the first guard’s leg drew back to kick her, something happened.

A forceful gust of wind pushed all of the security guards and Mannox backwards.

“What—?”

Mannox was cut off by Cathy scrambling to her feet. She looked around, stunned before her hands drifted up to her face. Her eyes widened upon feeling a mask.

A blue mask that looked to be an owl.

Cathy felt panic well inside of her as she frantically touched the mask. Was this what the voice meant by ‘tear off your mask?’ She grabbed at it and began to tug sharply.

Several pulls and the mask ripped free. Blood and skin tore with it, leading to blood streaming down Cathy’s face. She let out a piercing scream at the pain, but didn’t fall.

Instead, she swayed for a moment before looking up, directly at Mannox. For half a second, Mannox caught Cathy’s eyes before she quickly glanced away. There wasn’t pain in her eyes. It almost looked like glee. Her eyes were a bright, startling yellow now.

Then, a torrent of bright, sapphire flames lit up the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translation:  
> Merde = shit  
> Qu'est-ce que…? = what the…?  
> Somnolente = sleepy  
> Brûle en enfer = burn in hell
> 
> Well, our first palace ruler has been revealed! Are you guys surprised?
> 
> Before I forget like last time. If anyone ever has any questions about what’s going on, ask and, as long as it isn’t too major a spoiler, I’ll do my best to answer!
> 
> I’m pretty sure I got through these first few chapters so quickly because I knew more of what I wanted to do. Once palace infiltration starts, updates will probably slow down a bit, we’ll see!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Escape and Remember...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: blood, abuse, past/implied sickness and death

The blood covering Cathy’s face began burning.

It became a bright blue fire that suddenly swelled up to surround Cathy. It covered her arms, drifted down to her feet. But it wasn’t hurting her.

An echoed chuckle could be heard and a golden helmet with piercing bright eyes covered where Cathy’s head was surrounded by flames.

The guards let out cries of shock and moved away from Cathy. Mannox cried out in horror, scrambling backwards until he hit the wall. Anne was staring, wide eyed, but didn’t move.

The flames and helmet suddenly moved, pulling away from Cathy to stand behind her.

Cathy looked different. She wore a sort of jumpsuit now, black and blue. Sequins covered the parts separating the black from the blue, giving it a more shiny look, but it was made even brighter by the blue flames. A bō-staff was attached to her back and revolver at her waist. A blank expression was on her face as she surveyed the guards and kept a close eye on the injured Anne.

Her eyes narrowed at Mannox as the flames behind her suddenly became a figure.

They were much larger than Cathy and were a flowing white gown with golden accessories. The golden helmet covered their head, white light coming from the eyes. A large spear, longer than their body was in her right hand. In her left was a large shield that held the image of a screaming woman with snakes for hair.

Cathy was quickly stepping in front of Anne, glaring around at the downed enemies. the being raised her shield in a protective manner, staring Mannox in the eyes.

“I am the goddess of war and wisdom, Athena!” Athena tapped her spear to the ground to punctuate her words. The shield’s picture seemed to move, the woman screeching and the snakes hissing. She glanced down to Cathy. “I am the rebellion that slumbered within your heart! If you so wish, I can grant you the power to escape this situation.”

Cathy’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Please, lend me your strength!”

Athena nodded, pleased by the answer. “Very well then. I shall!”

Mannox spluttered for a moment, fear clear in his eyes. “Get them!” He finally cried. Two of the guards were quickly lunging forward. They fell apart into a pool of shadows before quickly reforming in the shape of monsters.

It was two jack o'lanterns with glowing red eyes. A witch’s hat was on their heads and grey robes billowed below their pumpkin heads, a single white glove sticking out to hold a lantern.

“For the great conductor!” One cackled and was quickly diving towards Cathy.

The black and blue dressed teen was swiftly taking the bō-staff off of her back and sending the monster flying backwards, where it dissolved in a burst of shadows. Athena spoke up as the second monster stared them down.

“As you requested, my power is yours. Use it wisely.” Athena stated.

Cathy nodded resolutely. And somehow, she knew exactly what to do.

“Frei!” Immediately after the words, blue energy formed in front of the creature before it turned into a small explosion. The creature screeched as the attack hit. It actually went flying backwards, slamming into Mannox. Mannox hit the wall and then the ground with a thud before the creature dissolved into a pile of shadows.

Athena disappeared, the mask reforming on Cathy’s face. The teen in question quickly began looking herself over, wide eyed in shock.

“Whoa…” Was all Anne could get out, clearly amazed but unable to say more. Whether that was caused by shock or pain was unclear.

“You damn—!” Mannox started, shakily moving to push himself to his feet.

Cathy was quickly pulling Anne up from the floor, wrapping her arm around Anne’s waist and pulling Anne’s arm over her shoulders.

“We have to go!” Cathy declared. They were quickly out of the room. On the way out, Cathy managed to snatch the keys from Mannox. She swiftly used them to lock him in the room behind them.

“What the bloody hell just happened?” Anne questioned, angling her head to look over Cathy’s new clothes. But before Cathy could respond, there was another flash of blue, although smaller, before Cathy’s clothes were back to normal and the mask vanished.

Both of them jumped at the sight. Cathy quickly shook her head to clear the shock before looking at Anne. “I don’t know but we need to get out of here.” She paused. “And you need medical attention.”

Anne was injured pretty badly. She had bruises and gashes covering most of her body. Blood was dripping down her skin and blood was on her chin too, from when Mannox had kicked her. There were more bruises than blood, but it was definitely still alarming.

“Yeah… they really did a number, huh?” Anne gave Cathy a pained but grateful smile. “Thanks for the assist. Even if we don’t understand—.”

A loud banging reminded them of the fact that they needed to go. “LET ME OUT OF HERE YOU LITTLE SHITS! YOU DAMN THIEVES! GUARDS!”

Cathy was quickly tossing the keys further down the hall before they rushed off. It wasn’t as fast as they would have liked, seeing how Cathy had to support Anne the entire way, but at least they were getting somewhere.

~~||~~||~~

They made their way through the winding halls, avoiding guards and passing more and more rooms. But none of them led back to the entrance. Mostly it was dead ends.

They were going down a long stretch of a hallway when they heard two guards approaching.

“In there!” Anne said, pointing out a room to their left. Cathy was quickly pulling both herself and Anne into the room, shutting it behind her. They leaned back against the door and listened as the guards went past.

“They locked the great conductor in a storage room?”

“Yeah! One of them…”

The voices faded down the hall and both girls let out sighs of relief. Cathy lowered their bodies to the floor, leaning against the door still.

It was a moment of respite before they knew they had to keep moving.

“Monsters, Mannox, and I’m pretty sure magic… I’m half convinced I’m dreaming.” Anne let out a bitter laugh that trailed into a pained cough.

“I wish this was a dream.” Cathy shook her head. The throbbing pain in the bruise on her face decidedly said otherwise. “But the pain is definitely real…”

“Yeah… I can definitely agree with that.”

“We need to get out of here as quickly as possible, I’m worried about your injuries.” Cathy stated, pushing herself to her feet. But before either of them could say or do anything else, a new voice spoke up.

“Hey! You two!” The voice was male, but sounded higher pitched.

Both of their heads shot up with fear at the unknown voice.

“You’re trying to escape, aren’t you? I can help!”

They both looked in the voice’s direction and found a small cage. Inside was some sort of cat creature…

He had black fur everywhere except for his white colored paws. But he stood on his back legs. He had a black mask that covered his entire head from the nose up, except for his ears which poked out of the top. A yellow bandana was around his neck and a brown belt with many pouches was around his waist. He was small, probably only reaching Cathy’s knees.

“A cat?!” Anne was the one who yelped.

“I am not a cat!” The ‘cat’ yowled in offense. “And quiet down! The guards might hear you!”

But then, the cat’s gaze fixed onto Cathy’s bruise and Anne’s many wounds. “Your injuries… let me guess, Mannox?” The cat asked, tail swishing back and forth angrily.

“You’re not with Mannox?” Cathy asked, already in front of Anne again.

“He’s the one who put me in here!” The cat yowled, fury in his eyes. “And why would I be in a cage if I was working with him?”

“Yeah, okay.” Anne spoke up. “So maybe you’re not working with him. But what’s stopping you from killing us anyways?”

“Hey listen, I just want out of this thing!” The cat pulled on the bars to no results. “And in return, I can help you get out! I know a way!”

Cathy and Anne both glanced at each other. Do they really trust this cat?

“If you want to be caught and killed, be my guest!” The cat said, watching them. “The place is on lockdown, and the only likely way to get out is my way.”

“What’s your name?” Cathy asked carefully.

“I’m Morgana!” He gained a smug look. “Real life Phantom Thief!”

Anne leaned forward and managed to reach up and tug at Cathy’s clothing, grabbing her attention. “Can we really trust the cat?”

‘The cat’ hissed at the remark but didn’t say anything.

“I don’t think we have another choice…” Cathy said nervously. Blood was trailing from Anne’s wounds. “If we don’t get Morgana’s help, I don’t think we’ll make it out alive.”

Anne took a deep breath and let herself lean back against the wall once again. “Okay… I trust you.”

Cathy nodded, grabbed the keys, and made her way to stand in front of the cage. “Please, help her.” Cathy asked as she opened the door.

“I’ll do everything I can!” Morgana told her, determination in his eyes.

Morgana was quickly by Anne’s side, looking over her injuries. He pressed a paw to Anne’s bruised and bloodied arm. She hissed at the contact and Morgana hummed in thought. He glanced up at the blood that had dropped from Anne’s mouth.

He nodded to himself and placed both paws against Anne’s arm now. Cathy watched in both surprise and interest as a green glow came from Morgana’s paws.

“Dia!”

Gradually, Anne’s wounds began to heal. The blood and bruises faded away. The cuts and gashes seemed to stitch themselves back closed. And Anne felt a sweet sense of tranquility come over her.

“Holy shit...” Anne mumbled after all of her wounds vanished, wide eyed.

Morgana grinned at them smugly, crossing his arms (paws? Questions for later Cathy). “Told you I could do it!”

“You can do it too.”

It was Cathy who had whispered. Morgana’s ears twitched and he turned to her.

“‘Too?’” He echoed. His eyes lit up with realization. “Do you have a Persona?!”

“Persona?” Both Cathy and Anne asked at the same time.

“Tell me, did you rip off a mask, followed by a figure appearing?” Morgana directed the question at Cathy.

“Yeah, she called herself Athena, like the Greek goddess.” Cathy explained.

Morgana nodded. “Well, everyone wears a mask, deep inside their heart. If you remove that mask…”

“Then you summon your rebellion…” Cathy whispered, recalling Athena’s words. Morgana nodded happily.

Anne perked up. “So by taking off that weird mask, you summon a Persona?”

Morgana grinned at her. “Correct! Both of you catch on quick!”

“So, you also have a Persona?”

“Yes, but I think I should explain things later.” Morgana said, shaking his head. “Guards will be coming back to check this room and I’d rather not be here when they do!”

Cathy and Anne both nodded their understanding. Morgana made his way over to Cathy and swiftly healed the bruise on Cathy’s face. 

“Let’s get out of this place!” Anne spoke up.

“Follow me, and stay quiet!” Morgana told them, heading for the door.

Before they could leave the room, Cathy gave it another glance. That was when she spotted something on one of the boxes. Her eyes lit up and she was quickly walking over to grab it.

It was her bag and fidget cube, perfectly fine and undamaged. Cathy quickly checked the bag to find all of her items, then she quickly put the fidget cube in as well and caught up with the others.

For a minute or two, Morgana led them down another hallway. They came upon a dead end. The only thing there was a statue of Mannox’s head.

“Dead end?! Are you trying to trick us?!” Anne snapped upon seeing the wall blocking their path.

“Wait… a switch?” Cathy realizes, reaching out and pushing the statue’s nose.

Morgana’s eyes lit up as he looked to Cathy. “You’re smart, curly hair!”

“Well look at that…” Anne’s expression shifted to a smirk as the wall shifted to the side, revealing a new path. “Nice job, Somnolente!”

Morgana glanced at Anne. “A bit of an amateur… but I’m sure you’ll pick things up.”

Anne growled at that. “I didn’t get a chance to answer, cat! Just because Cathy answered first doesn’t make me a dumbass!”

Morgana actually looked a little scolded by Anne’s words. “Ah, right… sorry.”

“I… it’s alright. Just… don’t do that to people, okay?” Anne relaxed a bit at the apology, giving Morgana a look.

Morgana nodded before gaining his confidence back. “Let’s keep moving before more guards show up!”

They quickly made their way down the new hallway, only for a guard to emerge from a doorway off to the side.

The guard spun to look at them and Anne was quickly scrambling backwards. “Merde!”

Cathy was quickly back in the outfit from earlier with a flash of blue. “Stay back!”

Morgana was quickly leaping in front of both Cathy and Anne. “Zorro!” He called, and with a familiar flash of blue, his persona appeared behind him.

He was tall and black, humanoid in shape. His lower half was skinny while the upper half was more muscular, a rapier in his right hand. He wore a gentleman’s suit, a silver ‘Z’ adorning this belt. A short black cape fluttered behind him. He raised his rapier into a fighting position, watching the enemy closely.

“So that’s your Persona?” Anne asked, almost eagerly.

Morgana smirked pridefully. “That’s right!” Then, he crossed his arms again, watching as the guard became a pile of shadows. “We will promptly shut them up!”

A red demon and a familiar pumpkin emerged from the shadows. They smirked as they targeted their prey.

Cathy was the first to launch an attack. “Frei!” A familiar blue energy and explosion hit the red demon. It was injured by the hit, but was still mostly okay, laughing at its fortune.

“Hmm, still a bit of an amateur at fighting… This is how you fight!” Then, Morgana was quickly summoning Zorro again with a cry of, “Garu!”

A slash of the rapier in a ‘Z’ pattern, and a gust of wind slammed into the pumpkin creature, doing far more damage than Cathy’s attack did.

“Weaknesses.” Cathy realized. “Different skills, different weaknesses.”

Morgana looked very pleased by the deduction. “That’s right! Strike an enemy’s weakness to send them right to the ground!”

Anne realized where he was going. “And then kick their ass!”

Morgana smirked. “Correct! Remember that well, it’s the basics of fighting!”

Another attack quickly had the pumpkin destroyed. The red demon growled and quickly flew to intercept them. But Cathy quickly hit it away with her bō-staff. Morgana leapt off her shoulder to slash the demon with his scimitar.

The fight over, Anne was quickly by their sides again. Morgana looked at Cathy with interest. “Not bad at all, your Persona is powerful!”

But the second he said this, Cathy’s clothes turned back to their school uniform. Morgana hummed in thought. “It looks like you don’t have complete control yet. The transformation shouldn’t normally dissolve like that… after all—!”

“This is all so confusing!” Anne said, one of her hands going up to tug at her choker angrily.

Morgana quickly shook his head. “We don’t have time for this! More guards will be coming soon and I’m sure you want to leave in one piece!”

“Let’s move. Maybe you can explain everything later?” Cathy asked.

“Perhaps.” Morgana gave her a quick nod before quickly reaching up to hand Cathy something. “Here, keep these in case they’re needed.” Cathy blinked at the medicine and nodded, slipping it into her bag. Morgana was then turning to guide them down the halls once again.

Cathy and Anne quickly followed. Anne muttered to herself as they went, figuring out what Morgana was trying to say. It didn’t take her too long, but both her and Cathy were still quite confused by everything.

A minute or two later, they passed a room with a glass window. Anne and Cathy both stopped upon seeing something familiar.

Their school uniform.

Inside was a student hunched over, instrument in hand. A guard stood threateningly behind him. And with a sickening realization, both noticed that every time the student got a note wrong, the guard would lash out with his baton.

For a moment, both could only stare wide eyed. Then Morgana was quickly next to them, spotting the problem. He glanced between the scene and the spectators. “Come on, we still need to go.”

“Shouldn’t we help them?!” Anne demanded. “I mean, you two could pull it off!”

Morgana sighed. “We don’t have the time to worry about others! And besides… they aren’t real.”

“Not real? What do you mean by that?” Cathy asked, giving Morgana a question look.

Morgana looked around warily for guards. “I can’t explain fully… no time. But the short story? That’s just how Mannox sees them in the real world. This world itself, isn’t entirely real… Now come on!”

“I don't fully get it but… this stuff is still really happening somewhere, right?” Anne looked horrified. For the student or something else, Cathy wasn’t sure.

“Most likely.” Morgana moved to say something else, but another guard appeared at the end of the hall. “Dammit! We have to get out of here!”

As Cathy and Morgana proceeded to quickly take out the guard, Anne gave the scene behind the glass one last calculating look. “How Mannox sees them…” She repeated in a whisper.

“Are you coming or not?!”

“Yeah, yeah!”

~~||~~||~~

A few minutes later, the trio arrived outside a door, where Morgana promptly stopped. “This is it!”

Anne and Cathy shared a glance before Anne pushed the door open.

The room was rather small, looking to be a sort of living room. Perhaps for important guests needing a place to stay.

Cathy and Anne both looked around the room. Cathy was the one who spotted the open window.

“I’m guessing we go out through the window?”

“Correct. It’s close to the ground.” Morgana nodded. He was clearly relieved to have gotten them to their goal. “Now hurry and go before they find us!”

Before leaving, Cathy glanced back to Morgana. “Will you be fine? On your own?”

Morgana actually looked surprised for a second before quickly switching on his prideful smirk. “Of course I’ll be fine! Do you really think I would let these morons catch me again? Besides, there’s still something I need to do here.”

The reassurance put a smile on Anne’s face and Cathy gave him an understanding nod.

“Thanks for everything! And you stay safe too!” Anne gave Morgana a thankful grin before quickly ducking into the opening.

“Thank you… you truly saved our lives.” Cathy also thanked Morgana before quickly following Anne.

Morgana hopped up to the opening and watched them leave with a thoughtful look, tail swishing back and forth. “Interesting… perhaps those two could be useful…”

~~||~~||~~

They emerged scrambling out of the alleyway. Both of them looked around with wide eyes.

Then, Anne was quickly looking over to Cathy and checking her over. “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine.” Cathy agreed quickly. “You?”

“Safe and sound.” Anne agreed with a laugh. Before the two of them had time to fully process what just happened, a new voice spoke.

“Shouldn’t you two be in school?”

A police officer had made his way over to them and had his eyes narrowed behind sunglasses. Cathy and Anne both paused, Cathy shifting behind Anne slightly at the sight of the officer.

“We’re heading there right now sir.” Anne said smoothly. “We got a little lost.”

The officer surveyed them for another second before sighing and shaking his head. “Alright fine. But I suggest you get to school before I call your teachers.”

Anne and Cathy both brightened happily and quickly began making their way to the school at a fast pace.

“Thank god for that cat’s magic, or we’d be standing there all bloodied and bruised!” Anne said with relief.

“Or dead…” Cathy murmured.

Both of them paused slightly before quickly continuing.

“Are you okay?” Anne asked in a whisper.

Cathy took a deep breath, her hand tightened on her bag strap. “Debatable. You?”

“As good as I can be for surviving a freaky Mannox.” Anne said, shaking her head. “From what Morgana said… he made it out to be some kind of different world.”

“Yeah… I caught that too.” Cathy agreed, keeping her eyes on the approaching school. “But… we’re safe now and that’s all that matters.”

“Definitely agreed.” Anne nodded her head as they reached the steps. This time, it wasn’t a music hall, it was the actual school, much to their relief.

“Boleyn!”

A teacher that Cathy couldn’t recognize stood at the top of the steps. Next to her, Anne winced.

“You’re late!” The teacher snapped, going down a step.

Cathy shrunk slightly, the one thing she wanted was to not be late to school. And they didn’t even have a valid excuse. Being almost killed by a barely dressed Mannox and a bunch of monsters in a music hall would decidedly have the teacher testing them for drugs.

“Wait just a moment, Mr. Evans!”

Anne straightened at the voice, eyes widening. “Oh you’ve gotta be shitting me—!”

Mannox stepped up next to the other teacher. “I’m sure they simply got lost.”

“Boleyn getting lost?” The other teacher snorted. “She’s a Senior!”

“The subway.” Cathy quickly jumped in. She squirmed under the eyes trained on her. “The accident messed us up. We’re sorry.”

Anne watched Cathy for a second before quickly joining. “She’s right, sorry…”

The teacher stared for a moment longer before sighing. “Come on, Boleyn. You get off this time, but I’m escorting you to class!”

“Meet me in front of the school after class is over.” Anne said as she passed Cathy.

Once Anne vanished through the doors. Mannox turned his attention to Cathy.

“You got Boleyn to apologize! I’m impressed, she’s usually too hard headed to ever say sorry.” Mannox let out a fake laugh.

Cathy remained quiet.

“So you’re the transfer, yes?” Mannox raised an eyebrow. “You seem quiet… I would hope you keep it that way.”

The thinly veiled threat made Cathy pause. Her hand came over to grasp at her uniform’s sleeve. “I understand.”

“Good!” Cathy tensed further as Mannox’s eyes glanced over her. “Perhaps… I’ll see you in music class! Now, go find your teacher.”

The second she was dismissed, Cathy quickly made her way into the building. She tried to seem as normal as possible as she went.

The way she had seen Mannox back in that storage room, and the student being beaten by a guard… she now knew exactly why she didn’t trust him.

The sudden shift in Mannox’s personality had caught her (and Anne) off-guard. But Cathy recalled something Morgana said.

Real world. And it would explain a lot. But definitely not everything.

~~||~~||~~

Cathy got another minor scolding from her teacher. It lasted a few minutes before the teacher had to take her to class.

The second she stepped into the room, the students began murmuring. And Cathy couldn’t figure out why. But then the muffled whispers fully reached her ears.

“That’s the transfer student? But she looks so innocent.”

“I dunno! She’s got a look in her eyes…”

“I heard she stabbed someone!”

“No no! She shot someone over drugs!”

Cathy felt herself shrink under the comments. She carefully pulled her fidget cube out of her bag and began playing with it. She didn’t notice several people flinch back as she reached into her bag.

Unknown to Cathy, a girl in a red leather jacket was watching her with interest. She wasn’t scared of Cathy, she was more curious.

Cathy took a seat in the very back corner of the class, the girl wearing the red jacket in the seat next to her. Cathy kept her head down as the teacher began class.

Why did these students know about her record? She took a deep breath to keep herself calm.

A motion out of the corner of Cathy’s eye grabbed her attention. The girl in red was grinning at her and holding out a textbook. “Here… you’ll need this more than me.”

Cathy stared at the outstretched book for a moment before slowly taking it. “Thank you…”

“Natürlich!” The girl replied before turning back to the front of the class.

Throughout the rest of the school day, Catty would find herself glancing at the door constantly. As if danger would come out of nowhere. She let herself be grounded by the constant clicking motion her fingers made against the cube and the teacher's droning voice.

She also began thinking over everything.

Personas, magic, Mannox, the monsters. She remembered Morgana mentioning something about a ‘real world’ too, implying that the Music Hall was a different world entirely. And at this point? Cathy would believe it.

Morgana’s line of ‘that’s how Mannox sees them’ also rang through Cathy’s head. If that was how he ‘saw them’ then was that still happening here?

It was all so confusing. And Cathy knew she wanted answers.

Soon enough, class ended. Cathy thankfully handed the book back over to the girl in red before exiting the class.

For a moment while walking down the hall, everything shifted, and for a terrifying second, Cathy swore she could see the Music Hall yet again. She shook her head and the image faded back to normal.

Just as Anne requested, Cathy found herself standing in front of the school, waiting.

Eventually, Anne came out, quickly making her way over happily. “Cathy!” She called out, hand waving in the air. Students stopped and stared but Anne ignored some and glared at some until she was by Cathy’s side.

“There’s a café we can go to to talk!” Anne said excitedly. “The music hall, our lives, whatever.”

Cathy perked up. “Can I have some coffee?”

“I don’t control what you drink, but it definitely goes with the nickname I gave you, Somnolente.” Anne snickered. The two prepared to leave, but a voice stopped them.

“Boleyn.” A familiar voice spoke. Cathy glanced behind her and caught a familiar shade of gold.

Catalina?

To Cathy’s surprise, Anne became very standoffish, glaring at Catalina. Cathy had caught a glimpse of this with Mannox, but now she was able to catch it with her full attention. It was also directed at someone who probably didn’t deserve it. And Catalina was just as bad. Her godsister’s voice was cold, and her posture was tense.

“Aragon.” Anne replied, just as coldly.

“I hope you’re not bothering students.” Catalina accused, crossing her arms. Cathy watched both of them warily, one of her hands going up to rub at her sleeve. Her cube was in her bag and she didn’t want to draw attention by reaching for it.

“What?! So I’m not allowed to have friends anymore?!” Anne was glaring furiously at Catalina. “Just because that shit show happened, doesn’t mean we control each other’s life!” Anne didn’t stop there. “I’m not forcing you to make or lose any friends, huh? You’re just alone because you always push people away!”

Catalina’s face shifted further into a glare and she seemed ready to snap back at Anne. But then she looked over both of them, her gaze noticeably softening as she looked to Cathy, who was still hunched in and staring at the ground, her hand having gone up to grasp at her arm. Finally, she took a deep breath. “Just… be careful.”

With that, Catalina was spinning on her heel and walking away.

“Come on, there’s a nice café I know nearby.” Anne said, already moving away from the situation. Cathy cast a final glance to the retreating Catalina before quickly speed walking to catch up with Anne.

Soon, the two had grabbed a booth in a nearby café. They had drinks and were taking sips as they tried to find their words.

“That bitch just can’t leave me alone!” Anne snarled. “And I try to hang out with someone and she’s there, trying to ruin my life! She doesn’t even know you!”

Cathy shifted anxiously. “... She’s my godsister.”

It took Anne a long second to process it. Then she looked panicked. “Merde! I’m sorry, I didn’t know—!”

Cathy gently cut her off. “It’s alright… What happened between you two?”

Anne tensed at the question. Cathy watched her for a moment before backtracking. “You don't have to tell me—.”

“No. It’s fine…” Anne interrupted, her hand had gone up to play with the charm again. After a moment, she began to speak. “In our freshman year… there was this guy, and he had been dating Catalina at the time. Well, he was a cheater and turned his attention to me.” Anne glared at the table, her grasp on the charm going tight. “In the stupidest decision I’ve ever made, I told him I would only date him if he broke up with Catalina.”

Anne glanced to Cathy. The girl simply gave her a nod to continue. So Anne did. “He, uh… told me the next day that they broke up… Before kissing me in front of the entire school… I wasn't expecting him to do that at all and Catalina saw. Guess what? They never broke up.”

“And Catalina doesn’t know the truth?” Cathy asked carefully.

“Nope. Neither does the school. And that was when I learned just how quickly rumors spiral.” Anne’s gaze dropped to the table. “After that, I was stuck dating an asshole too, I couldn’t get out of the relationship on my own terms apparently… Would not recommend it.”

Cathy hummed. “I get that.”

“Asshole boyfriend?” Anne asked with a raised eyebrow.

“You could put it that way.” Cathy answered, taking a deep breath. “Thank you… for telling me all of that.”

Anne shrugged. “You would have heard rumors anyways. I figured it was better to get it out of the way.” Anne tilted her head, watching Cathy closely. “So what about you?”

“Me?”

“Everyone’s heard of the famous transfer student with an assault record!” Anne snorted after that. “But I don’t see how you could get an assault record… not when I first met you and definitely not after you saved my life.”

Cathy’s heart jumped into her throat. “How do you know about that? My class did too.”

Anne looked confused. “The arrest?”

Cathy nodded numbly as she paled.

“Merde… we weren’t supposed to know about that?” Anne asked, wide eyed with realization.

Cathy shook her head, curling in on herself. She had wanted to keep her head down. Maybe she could fit in, even with her weirdness. But now, everyone knew about her arrest. They thought she was a monster. Their earlier words proved it.

She jolted upon feeling a touch, and looking up, she caught green.

Anne had sat next to her in the booth and had taken a gentle grip on her hands, keeping Cathy from hurting herself. Anne’s thumb tapped against one of Cathy’s palms.

Oh. Cathy hadn’t realized that her nails had gone to her scalp. She managed to speak.

“Sorry.” Cathy whispered. “Know it’s weird.”

“It’s not weird at all, I promise.” Anne soothed. “You’re panicking, and I get that. I do the same thing sometimes.” Anne gave her a joking smile. “And If anything, I’m the weird one! Always fidgeting. I get too angry and loud, on and on!” Anne’s smile got softer. “And I’m sorry… about bringing up your record. I didn’t know that it was leaked like that.”

Cathy had untensed slightly, letting her hands go slack in Anne’s hold. It felt comforting. “The charge was false.”

“Hm?” Anne blinked, confused. She honestly didn’t think Cathy would speak for another minute or two.

“The charge was false.” Cathy repeated, staring at their hands. “I didn’t do it… two guys were trying to push themselves on a girl… one of them was my boyfriend…”

Anne paused as that sunk in. “Damn, I’m so sorry, Somnolente.”

Cathy gave her a thankful glance before continuing. “His friend got hurt. He gave me a choice. Be his girlfriend or be arrested.”

“You chose the second?” Anne asked softly.

“First one.” Cathy mumbled. “Lasted a week before I called it off.”

“And he got you arrested for it…” Anne whispered. “Jesus…”

There was a moment of silence as both tried to figure out what to say next.

“Hey, if anyone gives you shit over your record, tell me.” Anne gave Cathy a reassuring smile. “You protected my actual life. I can at least protect you from the asshole teenagers!”

Cathy nodded back, a small smile appearing. “Thank you.” Anne beamed at the response.

There was a long stretch of comfortable silence. Finally, Anne spoke up. “I need to go back there.”

Cathy’s head jolted up, giving Anne a blank stare. “What?”

“That place… there’s something I need to know. There’s… something I’ve suspected for a while… and Mannox— something that weird version said… and what Morgana said about that abuse still happening…” Anne looked at Cathy’s face, the other girl carefully avoided eye contact. Anne didn’t seem to mind, too focused on getting her words out. “I need to know if I’m right or wrong.”

“Anne—!”

“I know we could die! But you have that badass Persona thing now! And maybe Morgana can help us again!” Anne looked desperate now. “This is something I really need to know, Cathy. And after all of that bullshit? You’re the only one I can go to for help.”

Cathy took a deep breath. “I was already going to agree.” Cathy gained a contemplative look. “I have questions… and that place has the answers.”

“Tomorrow after school?” Anne asked, a relieved look on her face.

“Sounds good to me.” Cathy said before pulling out her phone. “Exchange numbers?”

“For sure! Hey, now that all that serious stuff is out of the way, why don’t you tell me about yourself?”

“Oh, well…”

The two would proceed to rent happily about their interests. Both would listen happily to the other. They learned small details, such as how Anne grew up in France until coming to England in elementary school, or how Cathy almost always has a cup of coffee by her side, no matter the time of day.

Even with everything that happened and was going to happen, they could take solace in this peaceful moment.

~~||~~||~~

Upon returning home that evening, Cathy was greeted by Catalina. And she did not look happy.

Cathy shrunk under the look, her good mood diminished.

“So first you’re half a day late to school, and then I find you hanging out with a notorious troublemaker.” Catalina huffed.

Cathy bit back her retort. She knew the truth now. The truth Catalina wasn’t aware of. “You know she didn’t mean it… right?”

Catalina tensed. She quickly diverted. “Why were you so late? The subway accident?”

Cathy nodded. “Anne helped me get to school when I got lost. You know how bad the accident was…”

Catalina shook her head. “This is true… you’re lucky it’s me hearing about this. Father…” Catalina trailer off and both of them winced at the notion.

“Yes, but I’m fine. And I made it in the end…” Cathy then carefully added. “At least I didn’t completely skip…”

Catalina paused before chuckling, shaking her head fondly. “You have a point. Alright, I’ll drop it.” But then Catalina brought up something else. “But please… be careful around Boleyn.”

Cathy winced. She knew the reason behind the hate now… Catalina noticed the wince.

“I don’t control your life.” Catalina said with a sigh. “All I’m asking is that you please be careful…”

Cathy slowly nodded. “I will be. And… thank you. For caring this much.”

“Of course.” Catalina said gently. “And I hope you and Boleyn had fun wherever you went.”

Cathy blinked in surprise at the mention of Anne. Catalina seemingly noticed.

“Just because I… dislike her doesn’t mean I can’t wish you had fun.”

“Well, it was fun.”

“That’s good.”

~~||~~||~~

That night, Cathy woke up in a familiar place.

“About time, Inmate! On your feet!”

The familiar voice of Caroline had Cathy slowly getting up from the bed. “So… this wasn't a dream?”

As she made her way to the cell door, Justine replied. “No it was not, and our master wishes to speak with you. It’s for your own sake that you take his words to heart.”

Justine's words had Cathy looking to Igor. The man nodded. “First, let us celebrate our reunion.” Igor’s grin seemed to widen. “Oh? You’ve awakened to your powers… special ones at that.” He nodded happily. “Your rehabilitation can finally begin.”

“So you’ll finally explain?” Cathy couldn’t stop herself from asking.

“Be quiet Inmate!” Caroline snapped, but Igor simply chuckled.

“There is no need to understand it all for the time being.”

Cathy stared blankly at his words. So he was still going to be mysterious about it all?

Igor continued. “You will be training the power of Persona, which you have awakened to… Personas are, in other words, a ‘mask.’ An armor of the heart when confronting worldly matters.”

Cathy perked up. Morgana had tried to explain Personas. But it seemed Igor was going more in depth.

“I have high expectations for you.”

“Expectations?”

“There is no need to worry. You will learn when the time comes.” Then, Igor shifted, both arms were now crossed on the table as he looked to Cathy curiously. “By the by… have you come to appreciate the Metaverse Navigator?”

The app?

“Using it will allow you to come and go between reality and Palaces. I bestowed it to you as a means to train you as a thief.”

Ah… so some questions were answered. And Cathy could assume ‘Palaces’ was that Music Hall.

“The Metaverse Navigator is a gift from our master! You better take care in using it, Inmate!” Caroline huffed, rod raised threateningly.

“I will.” Cathy agreed with a nod. She would be using it tomorrow anyways. She just had to figure out how to operate it. Caroline looked pleased by Cathy’s agreement.

“Devote yourself to your training so that you may become a fine thief.” Justine told Cathy.

“So you want me to become a thief?”

“Correct.” Was the only answer Justine gave. Cathy hummed in response but didn’t press further.

“It must be disheartening to make use of the Metaverse Navigator alone…” Igor nodded his head, seemingly coming to a decision. “Should there be others who would prove beneficial to you, I will grant it to them as well. This is all for you to grow as a most excellent thief.”

For a moment after Igor finished, it was quiet. Igor watched Cathy and the twins looked to Igor. Cathy watched all three, rocking slightly in her spot as she shifted through the new information she had gathered. Some answers were given, and some questions were given.

Finally, Igor looked up to the ceiling, intrigued.

“It seems there is something for you to remember… hm, you are a curious case indeed, trickster.” Igor dipped his head, just as the alarm sounded. “Good luck.”

“Time’s up!”

And then just like last time, everything went black. Only this time… Cathy didn’t wake up.

~~||~~||~~

She first noticed just how horrible she felt. She felt sick. But where was she?

Through crack eyes, she could make out light. And a bedroom? It did feel like she was laying on a bed.

She could hear people bustling around her, almost frantically. There was a man speaking. Thomas?

There was a baby crying somewhere… Mary?

She felt sick, like a great force was pressing down on her. There was pain too. She wanted it to stop. Everything faded out, as if she was falling into an abyss of black. Everything became numb and her senses escaped her.

And then… Catherine Parr snapped awake.

She let out a loud sob. Where was she now? What was happening? Did she die?

Warm arms were around her, holding her close to someone.

For a moment, Cathy batted at the arms surrounding her. But the arms maintained the gentle hold and a hand came up to rest on her head, fingers trailing gently through her hair. Cathy soon relaxed into the hold, her hands trailing down to cover her stomach as she sobbed.

Cathy felt the same sickness and pain she did in the nightmare. After a moment, Cathy managed to look up at Catalina’s face, training her eyes on the other girl’s nose. Ragged breaths escaped Cathy’s lips and for a terrifying moment, she couldn’t breathe.

“Are you sick?” Catalina asked, pure concern on her face. “There’s a doctor around the corner. I can go get her?”

Cathy shook her head. “Nightmare… S… sick. Thomas… A baby crying.” Cathy broke into a sob, falling deeper into Catalina’s arms. “It felt so real.”

“Shh, you’re alright now.” Catalina began soothing, relaxing slightly knowing that it was just a nightmare. The nightmare was still bad, but it could have been much worse if Cathy was sick or injured.

Catalina continued murmuring gently as Cathy gradually calmed down. The blue clad teen still felt sick and in pain, but it was slowly fading.

And soon, Cathy fell into another sleep, still held against Catalina’s chest. She would have another dream that night, this time of four separate weddings. All to men she didn’t recognize. But she wouldn’t wake Catalina with those.

As she fell asleep, she whispered one name.

“Mary…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translate:  
> Somnolente = sleep  
> Merde = shit  
> Natürlich = of course
> 
> ——————————
> 
> Well, when you can’t sleep, you write! The night after posting the last chapter, I could not sleep well, so I wrote most of this chapter instead! Don’t worry though, I got sleep last night and I feel great!
> 
> Oooh, the reincarnation comes into play! And maybe some questions were answered... and maybe more questions were given. Cathy wants answers just like you.
> 
> I know I threw backstories out there pretty quick. But we don’t know everything about Anne just yet. The bit with Catalina was revealed due to Cathy’s curiosity. And hey, they almost went trough death together, that’s gotta bring you closer. So yeah, Cathy and Anne are new friends gearing up to explore that Music Hall and find some answers!
> 
> And just what is it that Anne wants answered?
> 
> ——————————
> 
> Pumpkin shadow:  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/3/35/PyrojackDS.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20190328232359
> 
> Morgana:  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/p__/images/a/a6/Morgana_%28Original%29.png/revision/latest?cb=20180115035815&path-prefix=protagonist
> 
> Zorro:  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/f/fd/S06_chara8igscs.png/revision/latest?cb=20170612164631


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Ghost rises from the shadows.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: implied/referenced rape, abuse, past/mentioned death, scars/birthmarks

The next morning, Catalina was keeping a very close eye on Cathy. And to both prevent Cathy getting lost and also look out for her after last night’s nightmare, Catalina rode the subway with Cathy that morning.

Cathy had her usual bag over one shoulder, but in her other hand, she held a blue thermos in hand, filled to the brim with coffee.

She couldn’t stop thinking. In the span of a few hours, she had had several visions. Visions that felt too real to be something else.

She pondered this the entire subway ride. During the ride, she had another vision, this one of a childhood. It wasn’t anything in particular, simply reading and playing before being called by a woman. Her mother perhaps?

Cathy was snapped out of the thoughts by a touch to her shoulder. She quickly looked over to see Catalina watching her with concern.

Cathy took a deep breath and gave Catalina a nod. “I’m fine.”

Catalina watched her closely for another second before also nodding. “Alright… this is our stop.”

The two carefully made their way from the subway to school. Upon reaching the steps, they found Anne waiting for them. The green teen noticeably brightened upon seeing Cathy, but frowned upon seeing Catalina.

The two seniors watched each other for a long moment. Cathy looked between them warily, the tense atmosphere causing her to rub at the uniform’s fabric on one arm out of nervousness.

Catalina spoke first. “I’m not going to stop her from being your friend.” She said coldly. “But if you do anything to hurt her, I will not hesitate to find you.”

Anne smirked widely. “Thanks for the warning, Aragon. Trust me, I’ll watch out for her.”

Catalina watched her for another second before giving a tense nod. Then she turned to Cathy, gaze softening. “You’re sure you will be alright?”

“I feel much better.” Cathy gave her a tiny smile. “Thank you, Catalina.”

Catalina gave her another nod before separating, making her way into the building.

“What was that about? Did something happen?” Anne asked immediately, worry taking over.

Cathy shook her head. “I just… had some weird dreams last night. I’m perfectly fine. I swear.”

Anne watched her for a moment. “Well… if you’re sure. I guess we should get to class.”

“Meet here?” Cathy asked simply. Anne nodded and the two made their way to class.

~~||~~||~~

Cathy had had several more visions across the last few hours and even through class. It felt like she was seeing someone else’s life… the scary part? It all felt so real.

There was a group of children. A king and another man (both were two of the four she recalled marrying in last night's dream) ranting angrily at her over her opinions and also for being so ‘weird’ yet again. The man she married last trying to be intimate with one of the children… and herself helping twice…

It felt like one last puzzle to the timeline of those visions was missing. But considering the visions she had been having, Cathy was sure it would be revealed soon.

The strange part? It was all linked together. It felt like Cathy was watching another life play out in front of her eyes. It was bizarre, throwing off her thoughts as she switched back and forth… and each one of those visions filled a gap in that other life.

It felt like she had two lives. And which one was the real one?

But something about the visions also felt… familiar. So Cathy made her way to the library after class and picked up a book. A book on the six Tudor queens of England.

With that accomplished and ready to read that night, Cathy made her way to meet Anne. On the way, she finished the last bit of coffee she had in a warm thermos.

It didn’t take long for Cathy to reach the front of the school. “I ran out of coffee…” she mumbled as she reached Anne, who had been leaning against the wall, fidgeting with energy.

Anne chuckled at Cathy. “You really didn’t get much sleep, huh? Guess you’re living up to you nickname, Somnolente!”

Cathy shrugged. “I already barely get any sleep. I only got some sleep last night because I was exhausted from the… incident.”

Anne nodded. “Yeah, I get that. Hey, why don’t we stop by the café before investigating? We can see if they’ll refill your thermos.”

Cathy rose an eyebrow. “And if they won’t?”

Anne chuckled mischievously. “Then we get two cups of coffee and refill it ourselves.”

Cathy beamed at the idea and they quickly made their way to the café.

With a refilled thermos in hand, the two returned to the school. By this point, there was almost no one around, if anyone at all.

“Alright! So we made our way from that alley… and came out in front of the school.” Anne was concentrating as she pointed out the alley the two had gone through. “Only to find the music hall… what were we talking about before? Mannox, right?”

“That’s right, I asked you about Mannox and you began ranting.” Cathy agreed, glancing at the alley.

Anne looked frustrated. “So what? We just… talked about him and ended up there?”

Cathy paused for a moment. Well, it was time to test Igor’s claim.

“I found a navigation app on my phone.” Cathy said, pulling the object out of her pocket. She remembered Igor’s words.

“A navigation app?”

“Yes. It randomly appeared and wouldn’t delete itself.” Cathy paused, debating whether or not she should tell Anne about the Velvet Room. She decided not to just yet. “It’s the only thing I could think of… but I waited to check it until you were here. I only know that it’s a navigation app.”

“Then what are we waiting for, open it!” Anne leaned eagerly over the phone with Cathy. She opened the glowing red and black app.

“Let’s check the search history…” Cathy said, tapping the tab. Sure enough, ‘Music Hall’ stared back at them. Cathy’s eyes flicked up to Anne. “Are you sure about this?”

Anne’s gaze hardened. “I’m sure. You?”

“Curiosity killed the cat.” Cathy quipped with a chuckle. Anne smirked back and Cathy pressed down on the search.

A mechanical female voice read back certain words. “Mannox… Cromwell Academy… Music Hall…”

And then, the world shifted.

~~||~~||~~

“It’s the music hall from yesterday!”

The next thing they noticed, after the very familiar giant Music Hall of course, was that Cathy’s clothes changed.

She was back in the outfit she had fought in. Right from the very moment they entered. This was the first time both of them actually had an opportunity to fully take in the costume.

“Well look at you!” Anne said, a little impressed. Cathy looked down at herself, also seemingly impressed.

“It looks like I won't change back and forth now…” Cathy observed, humming as she reached up to tug at the short, puffy sleeves curiously.

“Hey, you two came back!” A familiar voice whispered. Morgana was peeking around a corner, beckoning them to him.

“Morgana! Glad to see that you’re alright!” Anne gave him a welcoming grin. They made their way over to join him at the wall, windows hovering above them.

“Shh, stop making a commotion! But… I suppose I’m glad to see the two of you safe as well.” The cat conceded, crossing his arms. He then turned back to his point of noise level. “The shadows started acting up, so I came here wondering what it could be… but to think I would find you two… you really came back to the entrance even after barely managing to escape?”

“We have questions.” Cathy stated simply. “And we came back to get answers.”

“Yeah, like what is this place? Is it the school?” Anne continued to ask, looking eagerly for answers.

“So you came back out of curiosity… I suppose I can respect that.” Morgana nodded to himself before answering Anne’s question. “That’s right, this is the school.”

“But it’s a music hall…?” Cathy slowly pointed out, glancing up at the building.

“This music hall is the school!” Morgana continued. “But only to the music hall’s ruler.”

“A ruler? Why would a music hall have a ruler?” Anne squinted at Morgana, tilting her head.

“The guards call him the ‘great conductor.’ The two of you called him Mannox.” Morgana elaborated, glancing between the two humans. “This is how his distorted heart views the school.”

“Distorted… Heart?” Cathy whispered to herself. Anne looked just as confused.

They faintly understood the part that this was Mannox’s view of the school. But why was it a seperate, crazy world? And what was a distorted heart?

Before Morgana could explain further, a muffled scream rang out.

“Merde, what was that?!” Anne questioned, wide eyes looking up to the building. “A scream?!”

Morgana shook his head. “It must be the performers held captive here…” he said simply.

Another scream rang out, causing all three to wince.

“Are you talking about the people we saw captive yesterday?” Cathy asked quickly, looking towards Morgana. “The ones wearing our school uniform.”

“Tch, it’s most likely on Mannox’s orders. It’s like that everyday here. And with your escape yesterday? I’m sure he lost his temper.”

“That damn coward!” Anne growled, looking ready to lose her own temper. If who she thought was here… “Hey, Cat!”

Morgana scowled at that. “I am not a cat!”

“Yeah, okay, sorry! But can you take us to those voices?”

“You want me to take you to them?” Morgana raised an eyebrow.

“There’s someone… I need to see if she’s here or not.” Anne said, determination clear in her eyes. “And maybe you can help us understand this place as we go.”

Morgana pondered this for a moment before seeming to have an idea. “Alright, I can take you.” Morgana then shifted his attention to Cathy. “But only if she comes with us!”

“Then it’s a good thing I was planning to. I would like to know more, and I’m not letting Anne go in alone.” Cathy explained, nodding in agreement to Morgana’s deal.

“Then it’s settled, follow me!” Morgana gave them a sure nod.

“Thank you, Morgana.” Anne thanked, a relieved look crossing her face.

Morgana quickly led them over to the window they hopped out of before. “This can be our infiltration point. We’ll enter and exit through here.”

“I suppose barging in through the main entrance would bring the guards down on our heads.” Cathy hummed, noting the reason.

“Exactly, that’s a basic of Phantom Thievery!”

“Why are we supposed to know this phantom thief stuff?” Anne asked, blinking at him.

“You said you wanted to know more, so I’m going to teach you stuff as we go. Now come on!” And then, Morgana was vanishing through the window. Cathy and Anne glanced at each other, but both actually looked a little eager to learn the phantom thief parts. They swiftly followed after the cat.

They found their way into the entrance hall. For a moment, it shifted and they could see the entrance hall of the school before it quickly changed back to the music hall.

“That was the school…?” Cathy spoke up, remembering the time something similar happened yesterday.

“I told you earlier, this place is your school.” Morgana gave them a quick glance before turning to look down the nearby hall. “Listen, we need to keep moving, who knows when a shadow might show up. Down here!”

They soon came out in the long hallways from before. “If we get through the storage area, we’ll come out at the classes. Where he teaches the musicians.”

“Right, well, we’ll follow your lead!” Anne told him. “Oh shit, guards!”

The trio quickly hid behind a corner and they looked to see a guard pacing up and down the hall.

“Crap!” Morgana hissed. “I had a feeling guards would be around here…” he turned to the teens. “We won’t be able to avoid conflict from here on out…”

Cathy tensed and Anne let out a small hiss.

“We’ll be fine! I’ll just teach you the basics of battle right now, so remember all of this!” Morgana crosses his arms. “First things first, always try to ambush enemies from behind! If you rip off their mask, then you can temporarily break the control the Palace ruler has over them. That will catch the enemy off guard, giving us a chance to act first!”

“Got it. Tear of the masks and attack from behind.” Cathy repeated, already memorizing all of this information.

“Damn, wish I could help.” Anne muttered.

Cathy gently leaned over to put a hand on Anne’s shoulder. “At least you had the bravery to come back. Most people wouldn’t do such a thing.”

Anne gave her a smirk, spirits lifted. “Yeah, you’re right. Now go kick it’s ass!”

Morgana and Cathy gave her nods and quickly raced around the corner to defeat the shadow. That battle was swiftly won and the group continued down several hallways.

“How much further?!” Anne asked.

“Shhh! Not too much further!” Morgana said, keeping his voice lowered. Anne huffed but nodded, keeping close to Cathy.

Suddenly, they could hear many footsteps coming down the hall. Morgana muttered something under his breath and quickly hopped over to a red door. “Let’s hide in here!”

They quickly raced into the room, closing the door behind them. Within was a table and chairs, instruments propped in the corner of the room.

“The shadows probably won’t come in here.” Morgana announced, hopping up onto the table.

“Really?” Cathy asked, her and Anne giving wary glances to the door.

“There’s a lack of distortion here, meaning the rulers control in this area is weak.” Morgana explained.

The room shifted again to reveal a classroom before turning back into the smaller room.

“A classroom?” Anne mumbled.

Morgana perked up. “Now do you get it? This place is another reality that the ruler’s heart projects.”

“So wait… then this is how Mannox perceives the world. How he sees the school?” Cathy spoke up, eyes filled with pure curiosity.

“Correct! One could say it’s a world in which one’s distorted desires have materialized!” Morgana continued explaining. “I call places like these, ‘Palaces!’ All of this is happening because he thinks the school is his own music hall, where he conducts the students, even through harsh punishments.”

“So this purely because he thinks like that and acts like that!” Anne asked, her eyes lighting up with understanding. So she really could find out the truth!

Then, Morgana’s gaze drifted over Cathy’s outfit. “Hmm… I guess you’re wondering about your outfit, huh?”

Cathy perked up now. “Ah, yes! Can you explain it?”

Morgana puffed up. “Of course I can! It’s also caused by this world. Anything distorts according to how a ruler pleases within his palace. I mean, a school turned into a music hall!” Morgana raised a paw. “In order to prevent such distortions within themselves, one must hold a powerful will of rebellion. Your appearance is a manifestation of that. It’s the image of rebellion you hold within. Although… I do admit yours is rather strange…”

Cathy tilted her head. “I rather like it…”

“So what about you?” Anne asked, finally taking a seat and looking straight at Morgana. “What are you anyways?”

Morgana bristled. “I’m a human! An honest-to-god human!”

“I hate to tell you this, buddy. But you look more like a cat to me…”

“That’s because… well, I’ve lost my true form…” Morgana paused, looking away from them. “I think…”

Cathy also took a seat, watching Morgana closely. “You think?”

“But I do know how to regain my true form. I snuck in here to start my investigation towards those means! I did… end up getting caught though…”

“Hey, no worries!” Anne tried to cheer him up. “We got you out, yeah? And now you can continue searching!”

“Yeah, and I’m gonna make Mannox pay too! I was tortured and crammed into a cage! Now come on, we should keep going! I’m counting on both of you, got it?”

“You’ve got it!”

“Agreed, let's work together.”

Cathy and Anne both gave him encouraging looks before they stood and followed him out the door.

“The classes are right over there!” Morgana pointed out the entrance that was further down the hall. But a bunch of guards were in front of their path.

“A group of guards are there.” Cathy pointed out, peeking around the corner.

“Let’s ambush ‘em!” Morgana declared in a whisper. Cathy nodded and with one swift motion, she was diving around the corner and up onto the lead shadow’s shoulders. It’s mask was torn off in a flash and Cathy was quickly flipping backwards to land by Morgana. Two shadows glared back at them.

From there, the battle didn’t take but a few minutes, Cathy destroying one with her gun and Morgana swiftly taking the other out with his magic.

“The magic is a good defense, and these weapons come in hand, as well.” Cathy said, looking over her revolver.

“Even a simple model gun would work here!” Morgana stated, almost proudly.

“Woah, really?!” It was Anne who asked, also looking at Cathy’s gun.

Morgana nodded. “This is a cognitive world! If the opponent sees it as real, then it becomes real. If the model looks realistic enough, then it has that effect!”

“I see… it's all based on perception and cognition…” Cathy nodded to herself. More and more of her answers were getting acknowledged, leaving her satisfied.

“This is getting a bit more understandable now!” Anne agreed.

“Ah, by the way, curly hair!” Morgana caught Cathy’s attention. “Would you mind guiding us in battle? I’ve seen you use some really good techniques and we need someone to coordinate us.”

Cathy thought for a moment. “Alright, I’ll do my best.”

Morgana and Anne both beamed at her.

They soon came upon another guard and Morgana stopped Cathy before she could rush behind it. “Let me show you another way, a hold-up and all-out-attack!”

They rushed the shadow, which quickly took the shape of a blue fairy. Cathy quickly knocked it down with a shot from her revolver.

“Good! Once an enemy is down we can initiate a hold up!” Cathy followed Morgana’s movements and the two were quickly in front of the shadow, guns trained on it. “We can ask for money, but for now, we do an all-out-attack!”

It turned out, they involved both of them rushing the shadow, hitting it with a flurry of attacks.

The teaching moment over, Morgana beamed proudly at Cathy. “You catch on quickly! Knock all of the enemies down, and you can hit them all at once with that attack!”

“Effective way to take them all out… that’s good.” Cathy nodded, happy with the new strategy.

“Hey, there it is!” Anne pointed behind them.

Sure enough, there was a large door with a sign telling them it was the classrooms.

They walked through and sure enough, there were several large rooms, just like the one they had seen before, with glass separating the thieves from the abuse.

There several different tortures happening, the most prominent being the beating. They also took notice of the girls being only barely dressed.

“Fucking shit! She better not be here…” Anne growled, watching a guard tower over a student. “It’s bad enough what he’s doing to these guys, but if he is hurting Chaton…”

“Chaton?” Cathy spoke up, staring just as hard at the abuse.

“Kat… my cousin… she’s one of his so called students…”

“So that’s why…” Morgana whispered, watching the two closely.

Anne looked half ready to slam the door open as one student was knocked to the ground, crying.

But another student, limping, walked past the door. And through the glass they could hear him speak. “Useless… leave us alone…”

“They want to stay here?!” If anything, Anne looked even more ready to kick the door down than she did before.

“We can’t take them with us.”

Anne was spinning on her heel to face Morgana.

“We can’t just leave them here.” It was Cathy who spoke.

“Listen,” Morgana hissed. “These are only humans in Kamoshida’s cognition. They aren’t real humans that have entered from reality. They aren’t like the two of you. They are different from the ones in reality, meaning there’s no point to saving them!”

“You mentioned that before!” Anne noticed. “About how they aren’t exactly real…”

“That’s right, you could say that these guys are extremely similar-looking dolls!”

“So he sees teaching students through punishment as effective… and he is the conductor controlling the performances…” Cathy huffed, finally looking away from the scene.

“Sounds right on point for that asshole...” Anne snickered rather painfully.

Morgana took a deep breath, cringing as he saw another hard blow occur. “This… this is still horrible. It all means he treats them like this in the real world too…”

“The bruises… I saw several students with some that they were trying to hide.” Cathy announced. “This is definitely still happening…”

Anne suddenly whipped out her phone. “If I take some pics, then maybe we can show the police!” But her phone wasn’t working. “Merde… it isn’t working… looks like that navigation app is the only thing that works.”

Morgana looked intrigued by that. “A navigation app?”

“It’s how we got here…” Anne told him. “Do you not have one?”

Morgana paused before shaking his head. “I don’t. But we should probably move. Standing around here will get us caught easily. You want to know if your cousin is here, yes? We’ll look around before heading back.”

Anne beamed at him. “Thank you!”

~~||~~||~~

They had searched around the so-called ‘classrooms’ for several minutes. Each time growing more and more frustrated and sickened by the situation the students were in.

But there was no sign of Katherine. So the group retreated for the day, Morgana leading the two humans back towards their infiltration point. Anne was clearly downtrodden and confused by the absence of her cousin. Cathy had to admit she was just as confused.

They made a shortcut and found their way onto the big center stage where Anne and Cathy had been first captured yesterday.

But when they were halfway across, something blocked their path.

Mannox stood there, guards by his side. He wore a wicked smirk as he observed them. “So you did come back… I knew you would.”

Anne was quickly taking grasp of the opportunity. “Wanna tell me what you do to my cousin, asshole?!”

Mannox tilted his head. “Hm, I don’t think I should. In fact, I think I should execute you before you even get to know.” Then, without even glancing to his guards, he gave one simple order. “Get them.”

The guards quickly took on their shadow forms, two large black horses with white manes and tails and large, curved back green horns.

“Yes, great conductor!” And then they charged.

Cathy was quickly blasting one back with a summon of Athena and use of a spell. Morgana quickly was summoning Zorro and repeating with the other charging shadow.

Then, both of them managed to leap out of the way when the shadows charged directly at them. Cathy managed to fire her revolver several times, finally causing one to dissipate.

But when that shadow fell, it seemed as if three took its place. The fighting went on for several more minutes, Cathy and Morgana becoming more and more exhausted as the seconds passed. Anne was watching, paralyzed with dawning horror of the situation.

There were too many shadows.

And in the worst moment, Cathy felt a familiar sickness she had felt last night. Her vision blurred as her stomach became pained and the feeling of sickness spread through her body.

She also had a vision. One final vision that filled the last gap. A vision of an arrest warrant. Held in shaking hands.

He was going to have her killed. Just like two of his earlier wives. He was going to kill her because of her opinion.

She quickly began striding down the hall, panicked. The guards would arrive any second. She had to speak with the king, her husband who signed the warrant.

She was going to survive. And if she had to play along with his desires, then so be it. And maybe… it was time to keep some opinions to herself.

The next thing Cathy knew, a shadow was slamming into her and pinning her down with it’s foot. She cried out in pain and scrambled to untrap herself, but the shadow pressed down harder, keeping her in place.

Cathy could only watch as Mannox made his way over to Anne. Anne had fallen backwards, staring wide eyed with horror as Morgana and Cathy were defeated.

“Well, well… looks like I finally caught you, damn thieves. Good riddance!” Mannox hauled Anne to her feet, hooking his fingers into Anne’s choker to hold her there. The choker pulled harshly against Anne’s neck as Mannox pulled her closer.

Anne choked as Mannox held her in place by the choker. She tried to pull back, the choker preventing her from doing so. The material rubbed harshly against her neck.

“Let… go!” Anne managed to rasp out.

“Now why would I do that?” Mannox tilted his head, and his grin widened. “This time, you and your fellow little thieves won’t escape.”

Anne pulled back harder in response. Glaring daggers at the man.

The choker snapped.

Anne and Mannox went falling away from each other, Mannox keeping on his feet while Anne hit the floor. She stared at the broken choker before her hands drifted up to her neck.

The choker had hidden a raised, red mark. A birthmark or a scar, Cathy couldn’t tell.

Mannox stared at the raised mark for a moment before laughing loudly. “History really is repeating itself!” Anne’s hands began to scratch at the mark, her breathing becoming staggered.

“History… repeating?” Cathy mumbled. History… yes, she was very curious about what Mannox meant by that. But something else also pressed in her mind, something she couldn’t exactly place. Her visions?

Mannox heard and spun around to face her. “Tell me, what did you know about your little friend here?” Mannox asked.

At first Cathy was silent, but a harder press from the shadow forced her to speak up. “I know… that she had a fight with Catalina…”

Mannox grinned evilly. “Ah, so she told you about her little spat with Aragon! But I bet she never told you about her little cheating adventures!”

“Cheating?” Morgana whispered to himself.

“That's right! Little miss Boleyn here didn’t have enough with one boyfriend… she went and cheated with three different guys just because she got bored!”

“Lies! It was a lie!” Anne shook her head quickly. “That never happened! He made it all up!”

“Then tell me why the whole school knows about it?” Mannox tilted his head. “Why else would they all have outcast you? Why did those guys you cheated with move?” An evil glint passed through Mannox’s eye. “Y’know… if you really wanted a fun time, you could have just come to me… that’s what your cousin did.”

There was silence. Anne slowly looked up at Mannox. “What?”

“She tried to say no, but I knew she was just playing hard to get! Why else has she shown up for all of my private lessons? All of them have. Although… Howard is the only one pretty enough for me to be fully intimate with.” Mannox snickered. “She’s given up on her little game now and obeys me. Isn’t that right, Katherine?”

“Yes, Mr. Mannox!”

And from behind Mannox walked out Katherine Howard.

She wore only a bikini, pink like her hair. Bruises still covered her skin. She hardly gave anyone else in the room a glance, walking over and hugging Mannox’s arm.

“Hello, Katherine, did you enjoy your lessons today?”

“Yes, sir! They were so enlightening!”

Anne stared, wide eyed and pale, at Kat. She scrambled to her feet, only barely managing to keep that newfound footing. “Ch… Chaton?”

Kat ignored her, looking adoringly at Mannox instead, resting her chin on his shoulder. Mannox looked very pleased at the attention and gave Anne a very smug look.

Cathy felt her own horror grow as well. This couldn’t be the truth… was it a cognition? Morgana’s voice confirmed that.

“It’s a cognition! It’s not the real one!” Morgana managed to yowl. Anne blinked and actually looked a little relieved at that.

She shook her head to clear her thoughts and glared straight at Mannox. She took a deep breath and felt rage bubble in her chest. Rage that couldn’t be contained any longer.

“Newsflash asshole! She’s forced to come to your so called ‘lessons!’ You pushed yourself onto her when she tried to say no! And when she couldn’t get out or tell anyone, you just hurt her more! I hoped I was wrong… but I was right… but now that I know?” Anne jabbed a finger at Mannox, pure fury in her eyes. “I’LL NEVER LET YOU HURT HER AGAIN!”

Suddenly, Anne pitched forward. She stumbled but managed to keep on her feet, hands going up grasp at her head as a pain hit her.

“So… you’ve finally realized the truth…”

Anne collapsed to her knees, sweat dripping down her face as the pain intensified.

“You’ve been pushed around, outcast for something you never did. Your father has tried calling the shots ever since your mother died…”

Anne growled, her fist slamming into the floor, leaving behind both a hole in the wooden flooring and blood smeared across her knuckles.

“And now you have discovered that your cousin has been dealt the same hand. Your step-grandmother and this fool in front of you pulling her strings like a puppet.”

Anne managed to stagger to her feet, gaze trained on the floor. Fury and pain was in her eyes.

“Why not cut both yours and her strings? I believe your cousin’s rapist would be a wonderful start.” The word rapist was spat with the same venom Anne wished would destroy Mannox where he stood.

“You want revenge do you not? You want to avenge those who have been hurt. You want to avenge your cousin. And you want to avenge yourself. With my power, you can achieve that wish.”

Anne Boleyn has had enough. Her father tried to control her life, the life that was ruined by one stuck up asshole who decided rumors was the best way to end an already forced relationship. She was done listening to others. She was going to take back her life and rescue Kat’s.

And Mannox was going to pay dearly for everything he had done.

“Grant me your power!” Anne declared. Her eyes suddenly became a bright golden and the voice chuckled happily.

“I am thou… thou art I! Together, we shall inflict retribution against those who have wronged the innocent!”

A mask appeared over Anne’s face now. It was a green domino mask, a pattern of black vines and thorns traced over it.

“Her persona!” Morgana was grinning. Cathy didn’t say a word, watching with rapt attention.

And then, Anne ripped off the mask with a roar of both rage and pain.

Anne was now decked out in a green dress, black squares scattered throughout the costume. A new choker was covering the red line around her neck. A large black belt of sorts was around her stomach, separating the skirt and top that were the same colors. Black sleeves extended from her wrist to her elbows, spikes now adorned the bands around her hair buns, and she wore heeled boots. At her side was a holster for a dagger and a pack filled with throwing knives and shurikens ready to be thrown.

Behind her was her Persona.

Large black feathered wings stretched out behind her. A figure of a griffin and a sword rested on her hip. A dagger and scale were in her hands, the dagger being flipped in the air. Her eyes were a bright light, like Athena’s.

“I am Nemesis! Goddess of revenge!” The Persona announced, she glanced down at Anne. “Are you ready to take hold of your vengeance?”

“Yes.” Anne replied, an eager look on her face as she glanced from shadow to shadow until her gaze rested on Shadow Mannox and the Cognitive Kat. Her eyes narrowed and her arm was quickly pulled back and throwing something, all in a blur.

A throwing knife hit Cognitive Kat in the chest, causing her to dissolve. Nemesis laughed joyfully at the sight. The shadows backed up at the new threat and Mannox scowled. Morgana and Cathy took the opportunity to escape and quickly reach Anne’s side, where they all stared the shadows down.

Anne gave Cathy a glance and a smirk. “Guess I got to return the favor, huh?”

Cathy chuckled. “It seems so.”

Morgana smirked, hopping in front of them to stare at the shadow. “Lets strike them down!”

Most of the guards were quickly guiding Mannox away, leaving only one. An elite guard, clearly higher rank than the other guards.

The elite guard let out a roar as he became a knight perched on the back of a blood red horse. “I shall stop you here, Thieves! For our great conductor!”

Anne gave him an evil smirk. “Sorry, pal! But I have a score to settle with your so-called, ‘great conductor!’ He hurt my cousin… and I’m gonna make his ass pay!”

The shadow growled. “You shall not get the chance!”

“Eiha!” Anne cried out. Nemesis raised the scale and dagger into the air. Shadows converged on the knight, striking him viciously. Both knight and horse were crumbled and dazed.

“Looks like it’s weak to your curse skills, Anne!” Morgana then pointed a paw at the knight. “It's time for an all out attack!”

The green thieves quickly converged on their target, launching attack after attack before leaping backwards.

“Don’t lose your head!” Anne tittered as she watched the shadow skid backwards

“The great conductor… shall not fall!” The knight roared, his stead rearing back. But before he could do anything else, Cathy pulled out her revolver and Morgana summoned Zorro.

A gust of wind sent the shadow falling backwards and two shots of the gun sent both knight and horse to the ground. One final blast of shadows from Anne and the shadow faded away.

Anne looked around for Mannox, looking very ready to race after him. But with one step she had fallen to one knee. “I’m going to get him… when I can go after him… he’s fucked!”

“When you can.” Cathy repeated in agreement. “For now we need to go.”

Anne paused before nodding her assent.

“Come on, we can just go out the front this time, the guards are all occupied with protecting Mannox this time.” Morgana told them, hopping off the stage and heading to the doors.

They easily made it back to the entrance. Where both humans looked to Morgana.

“I summoned a Persona too! That was awesome!” Anne reached up to touch her mask. “Nemesis, huh? And this costume looks amazing!”

“It's to prevent you from being affected by distortions, remember? Your appearance reflects your inner self. The rebel that slumbers within.”

“So… our rebels within, are theatre costumes?” Cathy spoke up, raising an eyebrow.

Morgana huffed. “Well I couldn’t tell you the reason behind that… I don’t know.”

“Wait wait! What about the Mannox in the real world? Wouldn’t he try to come after us there?” Anne suddenly realized, looking panicked.

“Good question!” Morgana approved, ears twitching. “But you can relax. The Mannox in reality can’t possibly know about what’s going on here. A shadow is the true self that is suppressed. The side of one’s personality that they don’t want to see or accept.”

“It’s true that he didn’t remember trying to kill us.” Cathy agreed with a hum.

“Well, I definitely understand a lot more than before! Thanks, Morgana. It’s complicated but you sure did your best to explain!” Anne chirped, giving Morgana a happy grin.

Morgana puffed up with pride. “Of course I could explain it! I’m a master at this stuff after all!”

“Well, you definitely helped. Thank you for guiding us as well.” Cathy also thanked, reaching down to shake Morgana’s paw.

“Ah, that’s right.” Morgana turned a bit more serious. “I guided you as promised, so now, it’s time for you to cooperate with me.”

Cathy and Anne both blinked, wide eyed.

Morgana groaned. “Why else do you think I was super nice about teaching everything?”

“Wait a second, you need to explain more.” Cathy said, holding up a hand.

“I originally came for an investigation, yes? I need to find a way to remove the distortion to regain my true form!” Morgana began to explain. “That’s why we need to go deep into Mementos and—!”

“Woah, woah! Morgana, you never even mentioned a deal! You just started helping us!” Anne exclaimed, looking very surprised.

“Of course I told you!”

“No, you didn’t!”

“So what?! Are you not gonna repay my hospitality?! I helped you find those students and also your cousin, y’know!”

“Wha—?! You little shit, you’re trying to guilt trip us!”

“No, I’m not! This was a fair and square deal!”

“Guys!” Cathy finally interjected, pulling her hands away from her ears. She had been covering them through the argument. “Morgana. You never mentioned your side of the deal. But Anne, we did help him…”

“You’re part of my master plan! I need your help!” Morgana admitted, looking up at Cathy.

“Okay, okay. How about this? You give us a bit of time to think about it. It’s only fair since you never even told us your side.” Anne suggested, giving the cat a pointed look.

Morgana growled but nodded. “Fine, I suppose that works.”

Both teens looked relieved. “Thank you again, Morgana.” Cathy nodded her head before making her way out from the Palace, Anne behind her.

There was a long pause from the cat. And then, “Wait a second… what if they never come back?!”

With that, Morgana was quickly rushing out of the palace behind them.

~~||~~||~~

After leaving the palace, the two teenagers head to a restaurant. A smaller place, and there were some people around but not too many.

They had ordered drinks and Anne began telling Cathy the whole story.

“Yeah… it was the same guy.” Anne was tense, staring at her drink. “He was the one going around cheating, not me! And when I confronted him about it— he just— agh!”

Anne was scowling now, knuckles clenched white. Cathy watched her, flinching slightly at the loud anger, but she was far more concerned than scared.

“So he made up a lie that you were the one cheating…” Cathy finished.

“And everyone believed him! I just… it was a lie, okay?!” Anne looked about ready to smash something, her fingers fidgeting against the table.

“I trust you… he really spread those rumors?” Cathy asked cautiously.

“Yeah… and that’s just another reason everyone hates me…” Anne said, one hand coming up to scratch at the line around her neck, which was hidden by another choker, while her other hand swirled the straw in her drink.

Cathy was quickly moving. She sat next to Anne now, gently pulling Anne’s hand away from her neck. “Well, I know the truth now. And the rest of them… they don’t know that truth. You’re a good person, Anne.”

“Hey… the same goes to you.” Anne grinned back, relaxing slightly at Cathy’s words. “I’ve heard the rumors they’re already spreading about you. I know the truth, those guys don’t.”

Both of them relaxed into a comfortable silence for the moment. They both knew the truth. And for them, that was enough.

“I can’t believe I was right…” Anne breathes out after a moment. “I suspected but I just…”

“You hoped it wasn’t true…” Cathy continued where Anne couldn’t. Anne nodded silently and Cathy carefully reached over to tug Anne into a hug.

They ignored every other person in the restaurant, focusing on each other and their thoughts as both of them calmed down from the day’s realizations. They learned of abuse and rape. All by one man who thought he deserved the right to do it. Eventually they pulled back, but kept close together. They had known each other for two days, but such an experience had forged a strong bond. And both of them embraced it.

“We will find a way to stop Mannox. This world or the Palace, we will stop him.” Cathy declared, gaze steady on the table but voice filled with determination.

“Hell yeah we will!” Anne grinned, still a little teary eyed, but cheered up by the notion. “So, do you think we should go back to the Palace tomorrow?”

“Let’s try asking some students about Mannox, tomorrow. Maybe we can learn more about the reality side of things…” Cathy suggested, already planning. They had seen the abuse in the Metaverse, now they needed to see some of it in reality.

“Sounds good to me! Now, do you think we could get some cake before heading home?”

“Sure, I have some money from the Palace.”

“What? How, when?”

“... I took it off the shadows.”

~~||~~||~~

While the duo had been having their adventure, two girls sat at a bench outside the school. One was Katherine Howard, in the same attire Cathy had seen her in yesterday. Next to her was the girl in red who had handed Cathy her textbook.

“So, our final queen arrived.” The girl in red spoke up.

“You have class with her, right Anna?” Katherine, or Kat, asked.

“Yeah, and she definitely doesn’t seem to deserve the rumors.” Anna sighed, shaking her head. “She was rather shy and hardly said a word. Didn’t even introduce herself.”

“Wait, did she wear a blue hoodie?” Kat asked curiously.

“Yeah, she did.” Anna glanced at Kat.

“I saw her on my way to school! She seemed nice…” Kat bit her lip before glancing at Anna. “Maybe we should befriend her?”

Anna chuckled. “Actually, your cousin already did that.”

Kat blinked in surprise. “Really?”

Anna sighed, a sad smile crossing her face. “Yeah… I guess befriending someone who doesn't know the rumors would be a bit easier…”

“I still wish that never happened… Annie’s been so… sad and angry ever since.” Kat then allowed a small smile to trace her lips. “I’m just glad that she has someone who can be there now.”

“And what about you? You’ve always been there for her.” Anna asked, raising an eyebrow curiously.

“Well, yeah. I’m her cousin, I’ve been by her side for years.” Kat laughed a little nervously. “I mean someone who isn’t related. Yeah, I’ll always be there for her, but now she has another person she can go to, and yesterday when she got home… she seemed so much happier.”

Anna hummed her agreement, understanding Kat’s words. The two lapsed into a comfortable silence.

“Hey… are you doing okay?” Anna finally asked gently. She reached over to put a hand on Kat’s shoulder. She frowned as the girl flinched before leaning into the touch. “You seem more… tired recently…”

“Yeah, I’m fine… I’ve just been getting more work lately…” Kat gave Anna a nervous smile.

Anna seemed to notice the anxiety. “Well, wait until you reach junior year! You’re just a sophomore right now, so you haven’t seen the worst of it.” She teased, grinning at Kat.

Kat let out a small laugh. “That’s what the teachers say too!” They both laughed, easing out from the tense atmosphere.

But then, Kat noticed the time. It was time for her lessons with Mannox… the man held private lessons for several students, Kat included, signed up by her step-grandmother.

Something in Kat’s expression seemed to dim. “I have to go to music class…”

Anna smiled gently, but there was another emotion in her eyes as she looked over the bruises she could see. “That’s fine, Kätzchen! Go be smart, okay?”

Kat nodded, almost numbly. She gave Anna a shaky smile. “I’ll see you later…”

With that, Kat got up and shakily walked off. Anna watched her go, a frown on her face.

~~||~~||~~

Before going to bed, Cathy poured over the history book.

So she was right, her visions matched up with Catherine Parr, the queen’s, life. Only, Cathy was feeling every emotion and seeing things not talked about and also differently form the history book.

But why was Cathy seeing her namesake’s life? She felt like the answer was right there, on the edge of her mind, and it was all too frustrating. She supposed it was a question to sleep on. She was already tired and could only half think due to everything that happened while exploring the palace.

Maybe, she could figure it all out after some rest.

So she finally convinced herself to leave it be for the night, there was a lot to do tomorrow anyways. She put down the notebook that she had been writing clues in (six people named after queens, Anne’s neck mark, the visions, Igor stating she was ‘remembering.’ It all felt so linked and like she should know the answer exactly, but yet it wasn’t quite clicking. Cathy had hit her desk at one point out of frustration) and curled up under her covers, drifting off.

“Welcome to the Velvet Room.” Igor greeted as Cathy awoke. She stumbled from the prison bed and made her way over to the cell door. “I thought we should resume our conversation from last night. We did get cut off, after all. That is why I summoned you here. So, are you becoming accustomed to this place?”

“Yes, the prison aspect still throws me off. But I would say I’m becoming used to it.” Cathy answered with ease.

Igor chuckled. “I’m glad to hear it, then. Your rehabilitation determines if ruin can be stopped. Yet, such a feat cannot be done by you alone. Today, it seems you entered a partnership with someone of the same power, yes?”

“You mean Anne.” Cathy said. It wasn’t a question.

Igor nodded his agreement. “Involving yourself with others is an important foundation for recovery. You’ve done very well. Although, I do not advise the formation of superficial relationships. It cannot be a frivolity, but rather a ring of those who would lend you their strength through morals and faith.”

“So… you want me to forge close bonds. But not simple ones?” Cathy asked, watching Igor closely.

“Yes. In other words, they are bonds with those who have been robbed of their places to belong.” Igor tilted his head, watching Cathy just as closely. “The expansion of that ring will help you mature as well.”

Now, Justine spoke up. “Personas are the strength of the heart. The stronger the bonds with others, the more power your Persona can gain.”

“There are countless people in your city who have talents a weakling like you wouldn’t have!” Caroline huffed. Cathy could admit that Caroline’s words hurt. “You better get them on your side, then we’ll change that into power! We call them Confidants!”

“Confidants…” Cathy looked intrigued. She had never been good with friendships. And perhaps it meant she could help people. Igor did say ‘those who have been robbed of their places to belong.’

“Perhaps, even I could be one of these people. You must forge as many bonds for your ambitions to come to fruition.” Igor chuckled as Cathy carefully nodded. “It seems we have a deal then.”

Caroline was then glaring at Cathy. “Alright, the conversation is over! Get lost, Inmate!”

Cathy obeyed, even though she hardly had a choice, the Velvet Room fading to black.

~~||~~||~~

A bright light pierced her eyes. There was loud, excited cheering and laughing.

Two men were on either side of her, her arms right in their grip. Her hands were bound, the rope burned as she tried to fidget anxiously.

But why was she so nervous?

She was guided up the wooden steps of a scaffolding. Forced to stare back at a giant crowd all gathered around. The noise pierced her ears.

Couldn’t they all just shut up?

The large crowd booed her, laughed at her. What is happening?

There was a man standing there ominously, a sword on his hip. She was pulled to stand where all could see her. She heard herself saying words and they registered faintly in her ears.

Above everyone else, there sat a group that was noticeably richer than the others.

An older man was sneering at her, eyes dark. A man dressed in robes for a king stared right back at her, gaze emotionless. A blonde sat next to him, she was trying to keep her own emotionless mask, but the lady couldn’t hide the dawning horror as she took in the scene.

She felt herself being pressed to her knees, a blindfold wrapped firmly around her head, blocking her vision.

A shaky smile was drawn across her lips. Why was she smiling? Why did it feel so fake…?

She could hear metal sliding on metal. Her heart beat increased and she could hear everything. The crowd, her heart, her breathing. She began to sway, unable to do anything else.

And then… she lost her head.

Anne Boleyn woke with a scream. It felt like her neck was on fire, like she had actually lost her head. That taunting joke she had made to the shadow happened to her instead.

Her hands shot up to the raised mark and she began scratching furiously. She felt herself spiraling further and further as the dream replayed in her head.

It felt like she actually lost her head…

Hands gently grabbed her own and pulled them away from Anne’s neck. She let out a whine, wanting the burning feeling to stop.

A voice began murmuring gently into her ear. Anne recognized the voice. Kat.

She let herself go slack against Kat, the younger cousin pulling Anne close to her body. Kat was taller, allowing her to pull Anne fully onto her lap and tuck the green clad teen’s face into the crook of her neck. Kat began carefully rocking the both of them.

It took several long minutes for Anne to calm down fully. Kat kept Anne’s hands away from the already scratched neck.

“Are you okay?” Kat asked in a whisper. In the few times she had seen Anne in a state like this, she had quickly learned that Anne did not do well with loud noises when already overwhelmed by emotions or another feeling.

“Think so.” Anne managed to rasp out. “Beheaded… felt real.”

“Maybe… you’ve been thinking too much about your namesake?” Kat offered cautiously.

Anne thought for a second. That was probably not the case… but for Kat’s peace of mind, she slowly nodded.

“Father? Agnes?” Anne asked, pulling back to glance Kat in the eye.

Kat shook her head. “Both are out…”

Anne did not want to be interrogated by her family. If Agnes or her father were home, question after question would be launched until it inevitably became a screaming match. Anne didn’t want to risk it. Kat would become anxious at the yelling, and Anne also remembered the two times her father had slapped her over whatever they had been fighting about.

She would rather not experience any of that stress at the moment. Not after it felt like she literally lost her head.

After a second of silence, Kat adjusted so they were laying together under the green sheets. Both were pressed close together, secure in each other’s presence.

Anne couldn’t help but notice the fresh bruise along Kat’s arm and collarbone. She let out a low growl at the sight, but Kat clearly thought it was related to the nightmare.

“Sleep, Annie. I’ll be here.”

Anne laid there, pressed protectively against Kat. They were protecting each other. Anne was protecting Kat from Mannox and Kat was protecting Anne from whatever terror hit her cousin.

Anne would always protect Kat, the shy girl she first met those years ago when her and her father moved in with the pink loving girl and her step-grandmother. And Anne knew Kat would protect her in return.

Eventually, Anne’s breathing evened out and she fell into dreams. This time, she dreamed of a beautiful little girl...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translate:  
> Somnolente = sleepy  
> Merde = shit  
> Chaton = kitty  
> Kätzchen = kitty
> 
> ——————————
> 
> I couldn’t exactly figure out what I wanted to do for the memory at first. Like, should they remember all at once or across the story? I eventually settled with a compromise of remembering across the course of a few hours!
> 
> Reincarnation is on the edge of Cathy’s mind, and Anne herself is remembering!
> 
> Hey, sorry if that fight scene against the elite guard felt a little rushed, I’m just starting to write action like that (hopefully, I’ll get better as I go) and I didn’t entirely know how it should go. Let’s all just assume that Anne’s anger fueled her attacks for this first battle after her awakening.
> 
> Also, this turned into mostly being a tutorial chapter... well, at least maybe some questions have been answered about how the world, Palaces, work! Things will start picking up, there was just stuff that needed to be explained!
> 
> ——————————
> 
> Horse/Beast Shadow:  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/4/48/KWBicorn.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20110904050857
> 
> Elite Guard/knight:  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/0/0f/KWEligor.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20110902054823


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The soon-to-be thieves reach a realization and Mannox makes a big mistake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TWs: past/mentioned rape, abuse, minor panic attack, attempted rape

That morning, Cathy made it to school before Anne. She bid farewell to Catalina and waited by the bench that was below the steps leading up to the school.

It didn’t take long for Anne to arrive, giving a careful goodbye to a very familiar girl in pink before rushing over to Cathy. Immediately upon reaching Cathy, Anne began talking.

“Hey, I got the same app as you! The one that took us to the Music Hall!”

Oh. So that’s what Igor meant…

“I also had some weird dreams…” Anne continued, keeping the conversation going. She did look rather tired, and if Cathy looked close enough, she could notice some red marks poking out from behind the choker. “A nightmare, really… all of it felt so real.”

Cathy felt her eyes widen. “You… did you die in the dream?”

“Yeah. Yeah I was…” Anne paused, a distant look appearing in her eyes. “Uh… beheaded. Like my namesake.”

“I had a dream too… I think I died of childbirth, or sickness… like my namesake too…”

Cathy quickly thought back to everything.

The visions. How it was the life of her namesake. Anne having the same dreams with her own namesake. The scar around Anne’s neck. History repeating itself.

And suddenly, everything clicked. It wasn’t their namesakes they were dreaming of. It was themselves. “Reincarnation.” It felt too damn obvious.

Anne looked at her in confusion. “What?”

“What if we’ve been reincarnated?” Cathy asked, staring wide eyed at her hand.

That realization brought a million different thoughts to her head. And also suddenly made her lives much easier to sort through.

And oh god that brought many many depressing thoughts. Elizabeth, almost dying, just how cruel Thomas turned out to be.

… In this life and the last.

It felt like her heart had been stabbed and suddenly, it was all so clear. Reincarnation was the answer.

She was Catherine Parr. Queen who managed to survive Henry, reincarnated into teenage Catherine Parr who is on probation and discovering a strange world.

It seemed Anne was having the same thoughts.

“Holy shit...” Anne whispered. She too suddenly saw it all clearly. She was the beheaded second queen, now a rumor bound teenager who can summon a Greek goddess. She was still having the visions, but it was almost pieced together.

“First that weird world, a talking cat, and Personas.” Anne shook her head. “And now… we’ve been reincarnated. What the fuck...”

Both of them stood there in silence. It was too much to comprehend. And really, they gained a bit of a headache. As if their body was accepting the truth just as much as they were.

“Maybe we can talk more later?” Anne suggested, shaking her head. “I would love to keep talking about this, but we have to get to class right now or we’ll be late! Are we still on for the investigation?”

“Yeah, meet in front of the school. I’ll see you later.”

~~||~~||~~

Through getting ready for gym class, Cathy continued with her thoughts. It was as if the realization of reincarnation had clicked everything into place. And now? Cathy was regretting a lot of stuff from her past life…

Elizabeth was the most prominent one. She had supported Thomas in it out of fear and submission. She was not a good person. And now, she was a friend of that child’s mother, who was reincarnated just like Cathy herself.

She wanted to break down. Cry and scream and just punch something. Anything to stop the rush of emotions and pain. She wanted to make herself pay for playing along. But she didn’t allow herself that luxury.

It was also clear to her that she had her autism in that past life as well. Henry and Thomas’s yelling and anger over her ticks coming back full force. If anything… it supported her theory that her quirks and just herself were weird...

Those thoughts were pushed to the back of her mind as she stepped into the gym from the locker room. Cathy was never good at gym, and the outfit always made her a little uncomfortable, even this new one. She definitely saw this going horribly.

And she was right.

Cathy tried to stay out of everyone’s sight, remaining in the back, towards the wall as everyone was given a free day. Students moved to gather basketballs, frisbees, and other equipment. But Cathy remained where she was.

Unfortunately, someone saw her. And promptly made their way over. It was a boy, and the second he reached her he began mocking her.

“Well look here, the delinquent transfer. Can’t do anything in such a crowded place, huh?”

Cathy decidedly kept her head down.

“Oh come on! It’s Catherine Parr right? Why don’t you tell me what you did? Our little secret?”

“I didn’t do anything…” Cathy muttered, gaze still trained on the floor.

“You and I both know that’s a lie! Come on, what did you do? I know it’s assault, but I want the story!”

Cathy clenched her fists. She remained silent. The boy only became more irritated.

“What’s the matter, queenie?” The boy sneered. “What, did you do what your namesake did? Helped someone commit rape?”

Cathy froze. And suddenly, centuries worth of pain came crashing into her skull. She felt herself stumble and she nearly went crashing to the floor. Everything felt numb as memories came rushing in.

Suddenly, someone was rushing to Cathy’s side, shoving the boy as they went.

“What the fuck, Cleves?!” The boy shrieked, having fallen to the floor.

“Back off! She doesn’t want to deal with your bullshit, and those rumors are false anyways you bloody idiot!” Anna didn’t even give the boy a chance to reply, whisking Cathy away.

Cathy was still in her meltdown as Anna sat her down somewhere safer. The only thing she could think of was Elizabeth.

She had been a coward. A coward too scared to speak out because of pregnancy, an arrest warrant, and being under the control of men.

And oh god… Anne. How would she react if she learned of it. Did she somehow already know?

“Hey, I need you to breathe with me. Okay?”

Cathy felt someone take a gentle hold of her hands, pulling them away from her hair. She tried to pull back but the grip remained gentle yet tight. The grip began rubbing soothing circles into the back of her hands. Cathy felt herself unconsciously relax at the grip. She began swaying in her spot and listening as the voice, two voices actually, asked her to breathe with them and she listened.

Cathy slowly opened her eyes. She was seated in the corner of the gym’s bleachers. The rest of the class was on the court, playing and seeming to have fun. Two people she recognized were in front of her. They perked up as Cathy’s eyes cracked open.

“Hi there.” Kat said with a smile.

“Oh thank god, you’re okay.” Anna breathed.

Cathy blinked back, still trying to calm down and also a bit confused. Why did they help her?

Before shoving it into the back of her mind, Cathy allowed herself one last thought on the Elizabeth matter.

And that thought was that she had a second chance now. And she refused to let people suffer or be oppressed like Elizabeth and herself had been so long ago.

With that thought setting her resolve towards stopping Mannox, Cathy turned her attention back to the two girls.

“Thank you.” She said simply. Kat’s smile got a little wider and Anna let out a small laugh.

“I wasn’t going to let him get away with that.”

“We both know those rumors are false. Maybe your arrest is true, but we doubt you actually did something like assault.” Kat explained.

Cathy actually felt taken aback by that. So far, Catalina and Anne had been the only ones she hadn’t heard spreading rumors about her. But now she’s met two more people.

“They are…” Cathy mumbled, still looking at them in surprise.

“Then that’s all we need to know!” Anna gave her a wide smile. “Now, it’s Catherine Parr, right?”

Cathy nodded and Anna beamed. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, fellow queen! I’m Anna Cleves and this is Katherine Howard!”

“Hello again.” Kat greeted with an apologizing smile. “Sorry we didn’t get to fully greet each other. You can call me Kat.”

“It’s fine… it’s nice to meet both of you.” Cathy murmured, now much calmer than before. She glanced up at both of their faces.

“You’re in Anna’s class right? So you’re a junior?” Kat asked gently, trying to pick up conversation.

“That’s right.”

“I’m a junior and Kätzchen here is a sophomore!” Anna said, pointing to herself and Kat.

“You’re a sophomore? Then how are you in this class?”

“Principal Cromwell decided to merge the grades into different gym classes.” Anna rolled her eyes. “None of us know why.”

“Mhm, it means I get to be with Anna. And now you too, for at least one class.” Kat perked up, a bit of light returning in her eyes. Cathy didn’t notice, even after the light returned, that even while being happy and relieved for Cathy, there was a haunted look to Kat’s eyes.

“I see…”

The three descended into a comfortable silence. Cathy found herself pondering if these two had been reincarnated. And what about Catalina? And even Jane Seymour, although Cathy hasn’t met her yet.

What about Henry and Thomas?

Sickness pooled in her stomach at that thought. If they were saying the same things, old life and new… maybe that meant they were definitely right about her…

“Hey, thank you for befriending Annie.”

Cathy jolted back to reality and gave Kat a small smile. “Your cousin is a good friend. There’s no need to thank me.”

“I know… but still. She’s the happiest I’ve seen her in a while. And I think that it’s you I have to thank for that.” Kat explained carefully. The three girls sat there for a moment, regarding each other.

“Hey, I’m going to go play basketball for a bit. Will you two be okay on your own?” Anna asked with genuine concern.

Cathy nodded and Kat laughed, her laugh was rather muted. “We’ll be fine, Anna. Go have some fun.”

Then, Anna was off, leaving Kat and Cathy alone. They sat on the bleachers, watching everyone play and mess around. They noticed Anna looking back at them every so often from where she joined the game of basketball.

While thinking, Kat looked down to the bruise on her wrist, just one of many she hid. She began to think about Mannox. About how she had to go to actual class in an hour or two, and then the private lesson that evening. She couldn’t get out of it, she was stuck. Just like she has been since towards the ends of freshman year.

Cathy had been watching her closely. She took notice of the bruises and recalled everything she had seen in the palace. 

Cathy couldn’t stop herself from asking a question. “Was it Mannox?”

Kat jolted at the question, clearly not expecting it. “I… I don’t…”

Cathy gently shook her head. “It’s alright… you don’t have to tell me anything.”

Throughout the rest of gym class, Kat couldn’t stop thinking about how Cathy knew the problem. Despite being there for only two days.

~~||~~||~~

After gym class, Cathy and Anna bid farewell to Kat and made their way to their own class.

The rest of Cathy’s classes went smoothly and she soon found herself sitting in front of the school, hunched over and avoiding people’s looks as she clicked at her fidget cube.

Finally, Anne came walking up, joining her on the bench with a groan. Cathy blinked at the noise and watched as Anne rubbed at her choker, which hid the scar.

“Are you alright?”

“Yeah… realizing that you were literally beheaded… it doesn’t feel good, unsurprisingly.”

Cathy paused. “We’re okay now…”

“I know. And I’m thankful that at least we have each other for this.” Anne chuckled, but it wasn’t filled with usual energy. “You had the visions throughout class too, right?”

“I did. They’re memories…”

“Yeah. I’ve noticed.” Anne hissed out a breath. “Your reincarnation theory? Yeah, that’s becoming a whole lot more true the more I think about it. And damn, it sure brings some trauma…”

Both of them knew it was the truth. There was no denying it at this point. Reincarnation was the only suitable answer as to what was happening. I felt too right not to be.

But with that came questions and realizations.

One such realization? They died. They died and became historical figures. Only now, they’re teenagers. They suddenly became teens who were mentally much older, yet physically and emotionally they were still teenagers.

Now, they also had centuries of grief to sort through. Death and agony to accept.

“So we both agree, that it’s the truth?” Cathy asked carefully.

“Yeah… it’s like something just… clicked in my nod when you said that. I was struggling with the visions and stuff, but suddenly, it all became so much easier to think through. And it just… makes too much sense.” Anne took a deep breath. “Where the hell do we go from here?”

“I think… nothing at the moment.” Cathy slowly shook her head. “We have a lot of memories and… grief to sort through. But I don’t know what we can do with the knowledge besides help each other heal…”

“Well… at least we know. And now, we can make ourselves a better life. I refuse to repeat last time.” Anne scowled at the air, clearly remembering everything that took place.

“And look, something else connecting us.” Cathy said with a small chuckle.

“Yeah… I actually wonder if the other four are reincarnated.” Anne hummed, glancing back at the building. “And those assholes...”

Anne knew pretty solidly that Kat was reincarnated. She had the same exact scar… but Cathy didn’t need to know just yet. There was the smallest of chances that she was wrong anyways. Besides, they had Mannox to deal with.

“Hm, good question. But maybe we should focus on Mannox for now.” Cathy suggested, finishing off her coffee that had been hidden away in a familiar blue thermos.

“Agreed. But after all of this. We will be talking more about it.” Anne declared. “At least I don’t have to worry about what happened after my death… thanks school.”

This realization. These memories and the realization do just how wrong some things had been.

New found trauma…

Once Mannox was dealt with, both of them knew that this topic would come back up almost immediately. Beheadings, abuse, physical and mental pains. It was something that refused to be pushed to the background.

But maybe, focusing a bit more on Mannox would give them time to sort through everything. And really, neither of them knew what to do from here when it came to reincarnation.

But Mannox? They knew exactly what the plan for that was. They needed to talk to some students.

“Alright!” Anne stood up, rubbing at her neck one last time to dull the ache. “Let’s get to work.”

Cathy joined her and the two made their way back up the school.

It turned out to be much easier said than done.

They stuck together, seeing how Cathy wasn’t too big a fan of talking to strangers. Especially strangers who assumed the worst of her. But every person they tried talking to, everyone part of Mannox’s classes who had cuts and bruises, deflected them.

“Wh-what?! I didn’t get these from Mannox, I got them from falling in the park!”

“I hurt myself on the instruments, that’s all…”

“I got mugged…”

So they headed back towards the front and stood in the school’s entrance hall, watching everyone leave for the day.

That was when Cathy felt a nudge from Anne. She looked questioningly to the other ex-queen and Anne nodded her head in the direction of something.

A small blonde was seated on a bench by the lockers, hunched over a computer, a concentrated look on her face. She looked to have more bruises than the other students they talked to, even being very noticeable on her face. Anne was quickly making her way over, Cathy right behind.

“Hey! It’s Joan, right?” Anne was asking.

The blonde’s head jolted up and she quickly nodded. “Uhm… yes. You’re Anne Boleyn… right?”

Anne snorted. “Yep, the one from the rumors, blah blah! You have music class with Mannox, right?” Anne asked, glancing to the bruises on Joan’s face.

Joan paused, paling slightly. “I… yes, I do.”

“Has he hurt you?” Cathy spoke up next.

If anything, Joan shrunk further. “You’re the transfer student…” she murmured.

“Hey, hey. Those rumors aren’t true.” Anne said immediately, eyes narrowing slightly. “She’s a good person who was in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

Joan opened her mouth, but before she could speak, a very familiar face rounded the corner.

Mannox.

His eyes narrowed upon seeing Anne and Cathy talking to Joan. He was quickly stepping over to them. “I hope you two aren’t threatening a student.”

“I should be saying that to you.” Anne growled back, speaking before thinking. Cathy tensed, keeping her gaze on Mannox. Joan had stood from the bench and was watching the scene warily.

Mannox’s face quickly shifted into a scowl. “Joan, head home.”

Joan paused and gave both sides one last glance. Mannox turned his glare on her and Joan was swiftly walking away. But she didn’t leave the building.

Then, he turned his attention back to Anne. “I don’t know what you’re implying, Boleyn.”

“You know exactly what I’m implying…” Anne matched his glare with ease.

“Whatever you and your little outcast friend are trying to prove? You can’t.” Mannox snarled in a low tone. “You have no evidence and I have this entire damn school under my thumb.”

“Perhaps.” Cathy finally spoke up. “But at least we know the truth about you.”

Mannox barked out a laugh. “Maybe you do… but who would believe the two troublemakers surrounded by rumors and assault?” Mannox turned his glare onto Cathy. “You especially should watch yourself, Parr. It would be too damn easy to get your delinquent self out of here.”

“Is that a threat?!” Anne stepped in front of Cathy slightly. Both of them stared defiantly back at the music teacher. Anne stared Mannox right in the eyes, Cathy’s gaze remained trained on his forehead.

“No. It’s a promise.” Mannox tilted his head. “You two stay out of my way, and you’ll both get through this year in one piece. You were told to stay in line, Parr. I suggest you keep it that way.”

With that, Mannox turned around and stalked off.

~~||~~||~~

“Well, that didn’t help!”

They had gone back to that bench at the front of the school, everyone else having gone home for the day.

“At least we know it’s true.” Cathy said, shaking her head.

“Yeah, Yeah. I guess you're right. I just… agh, all of this sucks!” Anne let out. “Why are we the ones dealing with everything?! Mannox, reincarnation, this Metaverse thing!”

Cathy had a feeling she knew the answer to at least one of those things. Igor, the one who gave her the app in the first place.

But before Cathy could speak up about anything, a new, very familiar voice chimed in.

“I finally found you two!”

The two looked up and found a cat perched on the wall above them. It was a normal black and white cat, but the colors… were far too familiar, even the yellow collar around its neck. That wasn’t even mentioning the fact that they just heard it talk and that it was glaring right at the both of them.

“Oh, you have got to be kidding me…”

“Morgana?”

“That’s right!” The cat’s eyes narrowed at them. “I’m here to ensure that you two keep your promise!”

“Promise?!” Anne stared at him with narrowed eyes.

“To think about my deal!”

“Morgana. We told you we would come back.” Cathy sighed. God, she didn’t have enough coffee for this.

“But I had no idea if you were telling the truth or not! So I followed you to be sure!” Morgana’s tail was swishing angrily.

Anne threw her head back and let out a loud cry. “Thanks life! First Mannox, then reincarnation and the pain that that realization comes with, and now a talking fucking cat who wants to push us into a deal!”

“Reincarnation?” Morgana rose an eyebrow.

“We’re still trying to figure that out ourselves. Right now, Mannox is the focus.” Cathy told him. Morgana still looked very curious, but slowly nodded.

“Wait wait, Morgana! You’re still a cat here! And you talk too!” Anne pointed out, wide eyed now.

Morgana growled. “I’ve told you! I’m not a cat! This is just what happened when I came here! That doesn't matter! I went through a lot of trouble finding you two!”

“So wait… do you have a phone?” Cathy asked. She was doubtful, but she had to be sure. “You came to our world after all…”

Morgana snorted and looked very smug as he began licking a paw, turning his head away from them. “You don’t need one when you’re at MY level! I did get pretty lost making my escape though… that aside, I did hear you mention Mannox. It sounds like none of your tricks are working. But I could tell you a thing or two about what you can do about Mannox.”

Both Cathy and Anne actually looked interested. “If you’re trying to make another deal, you better be upfront about it this time.” Cathy told the cat simply.

Suddenly, two passersby walked past. “Did you hear a cat?”

“Yeah, I guess there’s one around here somewhere. Pretty chatty too, meow after meow!”

Their voices faded down the street and both teens looked back to Morgana.

“Wait… only the two of us can understand you?” Anne looked curiously at the ‘cat.’

“It looks like it.” Morgana nodded. “Although, I don’t know the reason.”

“Right, so only us can hear you.” Cathy redirected the conversation back to the original course. “You said you had ways to deal with Mannox.”

Morgana purred happily. “That’s right! Another way is to attack his music hall.”

“Attack the music hall?”

“That’s right! The music hall is how Mannox views the school, you know this.” Morgana explained. “Now, I told you he doesn’t realize what happens there. But, that music hall is still connected deeply to the depths of his heart. If that Palace was to disappear, it would naturally affect the real Mannox!”

“It would get rid of his desires, right? You said something about distorted desires.” Anne finished for him.

“That would stop the abuse?” Cathy also chimed in. Both were very interested in this plan now.

Morgana paced along the wall. “Correct you two! A Palace is a manifestation of a person’s distorted desires. If that castle was no more than those desires would vanish as well!”

“And that would for sure stop the abuse?” Anne double checked.

“Erasing a palace essentially means forcing the owner to have a change of heart. However, while the warped desire and wants disappear, those crimes they committed? Those are still there. Mannox wouldn’t be able to bear the weight of those crimes and would end up confessing to them himself.”

“He would turn himself in for everything…” Cathy was nodding along, looking very intrigued by this new reveal.

“And then the abuse would stop for good.” Anne was smirking now, arms crossed.

Morgana continued. “And since the Palace will no longer exist, everything we did there will have been forgotten. So we would bring Mannox down, but there wouldn’t be a single trace of our involvement in the matter!”

“You’re being a big help, Morgana!” Anne said eagerly. “How would we get rid of the palace?”

“By stealing the treasure held within.”

“Wait… treasure? Stealing?” Cathy spoke up. In the back of her mind, she remembered Igor and the twins calling her a thief. Is this what they meant?

“I’ll tell you more once you agree to go ahead. It’s my most valuable secret plan after all! If you want to help me with this, then I’ll gladly teach you.” Morgana surveyed both of them closely. “Well?”

Anne and Cathy looked to each other.

“We don’t have a better plan… here, we’d just get in trouble, expelled, or worse.” Anne spoke up.

“And we can’t just stand by…” Cathy agreed. They shared a nod before looking back to Morgana. “Are there any risks?” Cathy then asked cautiously. “This information is wonderful and all, but it seems a little too good to be true…”

“Ah, that’s right… I really should have mentioned this earlier.” Morgana paused for a moment. “If we erase a palace… there is no doubt that the person’s distorted desires will be erased as well. But desires? Those are what we need in order to survive… The will to eat, sleep, fall in love. Those sorts of things.”

“Wait… you’re not saying…?” Anne trailed off.

Morgana nodded almost solemnly, ears lowering. “If all of those desires were to vanish, they’d be no different from someone who has shut down entirely. There’s even a chance of death if they are not cared for properly.”

“You’re saying they could die.” Cathy said simply.

“Dammit... their deaths would be our fault.” Anne shook her head. “But you said it’s only a chance, right?”

“That’s right.” Then he tilted his head, watching both of them with a frown. “And aren’t you determined enough to face that risk?”

Both teens were silent, clearly debating.

“Somnolente, what are you thinking?” Anne asked, glancing over to the blue clad teen.

“I think… we have to take that risk.” Cathy finally spoke, staring at the wall. “People are being hurt... And Morgana told us we wouldn’t be traceable. I don’t like the thought of killing. But like you two said, it’s only a chance. And what if we manage to get the good side of that risk?”

“If we go around doing whatever we want… we’d be no better than Mannox.” Anne hissed. She agreed with Cathy. But there was no way in hell she wanted to stoop to Henry— no, Mannox’s level. She didn’t want to be like that, not after her experiences.

“This is our only option Anne. I hate it just as much as you do. I don’t want to kill and I don't want to be on his level. But are we going to let him get away with his abuse without trying something?” Cathy questioned.

She understood exactly where Anne was coming from. Henry, Thomas, Mannox. She had been on their level once. And she vowed to never do that again. But the possibility of stopping someone like that? It was a risk she was willing to take. Maybe… she could start atoning… it would be rehabilitation from the sin she had committed.

“Why don’t I come back later? I can tell both of you are conflicted about this.” Morgana said smoothly, ready to make his way down the wall. “Just make sure that you’ve made your decision by then.”

But before Morgana could leave, they noticed Anna Cleves, making her way down the school steps. She had an angry frown on her face.

Morgana was quickly hiding at the sight of someone new. But he didn’t leave, curiosity taking over. Anna spotted them and walked over, her frown vanishing.

“Hey, you two!” She greeted easily, a grin on her face. But that smile was shaky. “It’s nice to see you again.”

“Huh, you two know each other?” Anne looked a little surprised.

“We met in gym class.” 

“Kat was there too.”

“Aw crap, guess I won’t get to introduce you two!” Anne gave Cathy a teasing grin.

“You wouldn’t have gotten to anyways.” Cathy said, a little confused. “I greeted her right before I met you.”

“Joke, Somnolente.” Anne said with a small laugh.

“Oh…” Cathy said a little sheepishly, but also chuckling herself.

Anna watched them interact with a small smile. “I’m glad you two are able to support each other.”

Anne gave Anna a wide smile and Cathy also wore a tiny smile. “We’ve got each other’s backs.”

Anne suddenly noticed something and her eyes narrowed.

“Hey speaking of her, where is Chaton?” Anne asked. Dread pooled in her stomach. “She’s usually with you…”

“She has lessons with Mannox.” Anna spat, clearly showing her hatred for the man. It seemed she had the same suspicions the other two did.

Anne paled significantly at that. “Alone?”

Anna watched her warily. “Yeah…”

Cathy was quickly reaching towards Anne, but before she could say or do anything, Anne had spun around. She was racing back into the school and quickly vanished into the doors. Cathy was quickly rushing right after her. Anna followed both, fear quickly grabbing her heart.

Anne knew Kat had private lessons. But now? She knew exactly what could be happening during them. And she made a promise to never let Kat be hurt by Mannox again.

Upon reaching the music room, Anne slammed the door open. Only to freeze in horror. Cathy and Anna were with her in seconds. Cathy’s gaze hardened and Anna looked just as horrified as Anne. Then simultaneously, Anne and Anna’s gazes switched into pure hatred and fury.

Kat and Mannox were on the floor.

Cathy silently thanked whatever god was out there that Mannox hadn’t gone the entire way before they reached them (although, Cathy had her suspicions of it already happening before now, she quickly shoved that thought away). Mannox was still in his pants, shirt off, and Kat was down to her underwear, Mannox working on her bra when the door had slammed open.

Mannox was quickly standing. He backed away from Kat as the teens stormed in.

“GET AWAY FROM HER!” Anna practically roared. Anne began spouting French curses, eyes narrowed into a stare that surpassed fury and rage.

While Anna and Anne faced off against Mannox, Cathy quickly made her way over to Kat. She was more concerned with the victim of the matter.

The girl had been whimpering while Mannox was over her, but hadn’t been fighting back. In fact, there was a blank look in Kat’s eyes. Like she had shut herself off completely from the world. As if she had been through this so many times that she began to simply black out form the world. That thought made Cathy’s heart ache.

Cathy was quickly kneeling beside her, keeping her eyes trained on the girl’s face as she covered her with her uniform jacket. Then, she quickly set about gathering Kat’s discarded clothing and trying to comfort the girl.

Meanwhile, Mannox was looking very unimpressed as he slipped his shirt back on. He observed the two very pissed off teenagers.

“What the hell do you think you're doing?” He asked, eyes narrowed threateningly.

“I knew you were doing something to her. I fucking knew it!” Anna hissed. “I never should have let her come to your fucking lessons alone!”

“She likes it!” Mannox huffed. “Why else would she keep coming?”

Everyone felt their jaws drop at that. One glance at Kat showed that was not the case at all. She was still very out of it and had unconsciously pressed herself closer to Cathy, hiding her face in the girl’s neck as Cathy quickly dressed her. Cathy readily allowed it, comforting the girl who had been so violated.

“SHE CLEARLY DOESN’T YOU BASTARD! SHE’S FORCED TO COME TO YOUR SO-CALLED LESSONS!”

“And what will you do about it?” Mannox sneered.

“I’ll kick your ass is what I’m going to do!” Anne shrieked, clearly half a second away from doing just that.

“And risk expulsion? Who would the authorities believe? The teacher who was assaulted over nothing, or the teenagers who attacked a defenseless teacher?”

Anne was shaking with rage. “You motherfucker!”

“You are worse than scum!” Anna snapped as well. She looked just as furious.

Mannox’s gaze drifted past everyone. They all turned to see Joan standing in the doorway, eyes wide with horror. “Ah, and here’s the girl who helped leak Miss Parr’s record! She’s definitely shitty with instruments, but she is a wonder with technology!”

Everyone paused.

Cathy felt her blood run cold. Her grip on Kat tightened a bit and she stared straight at Joan.

“It was you…?” Cathy managed to whisper out. Joan froze under the whispered words. A whimper escaped her lips and she looked ready to bolt.

“You know what, all of you have caused me too much trouble!” Mannox’s eyes narrowed at every single teenager in the room. “Especially two of you, who I warned just earlier today! I’m having you all expelled.”

“What?!” It was Anna who cried.

“That’s right, at the next teacher’s meeting in a month, I’ll bring it up, and then you can all say goodbye to your education.” His gaze flicked to Cathy and a wicked smirk stretched across his lips. “Oh, and Parr? Do tell me how Juvie goes.”

With that, Mannox turned his back on all of them.

Cathy was staring, wide eyed at Mannox. Her hands began shaking as one hand moved to clench at her arm, freeing a bit of blood.

Then, she felt something touch her arm. She snapped her gaze down to find Kat looking at her in worry. The glaze was still present, but much less so than it was earlier.

“You’re okay…” Kat mumbled, still half in her trance.

“I should be the one telling that to you…” Cathy said gently, calming down slightly. She needed to focus on the current events right now. And that was getting Kat out of here.

“Come on, let’s get her out of here.” Anna agreed with Cathy’s thoughts. Together, Anna and Cathy raised Kat and held her between them. Anne was with them immediately and gently cupping Kat’s face.

“Hey, Chaton… you’re okay now, I promise. You’re safe now…”

“Annie…” Kat whispered back, tears beginning to fall down her cheeks.

The group made their way outside, to the front for the school. Joan stayed with them too, giving all of them terrified and worried glances. 

Once outside, Joan gave one last glance to Cathy. “He forced me… and I’m so, so sorry.” And then, under Cathy’s blank stare, she quickly left, vanishing around the corner at the end of the street.

But Cathy couldn’t bring herself to care about that just yet. She already made the assumption that Joan was forced. With Mannox, and how shy and afraid Joan was, Cathy could easily believe it. Mannox was the guilty one.

And right now, Kat and Mannox were much more important than Joan’s secret that Mannox let ‘slip.’ It was to get everyone’s attention away from him, Cathy knew that as well.

Anna had led Kat over to a bench and sat her down. She watched over the girl, who was starting to fully come out of her daze. Kat was curled in on herself, an almost dead look in her eyes. As if she came out of one trance to enter another.

Anne hovered as well, she looked beyond furious. She had made a promise that Mannox wouldn’t hurt Kat again, yet she witnessed him do it. This time, as far as Anne was concerned, Mannox wouldn’t get another chance.

Morgana had reappeared and balanced himself on the wall next to Cathy, taking in the scene. “What happened?”

“Mannox.” Was the only answer Cathy gave. But it was enough to tell the story. Morgana hissed, claws sheathing and unsheathing as he observed the broken down Kat and furious teenagers.

While Anna had Kat off to the side, Anne made her way over to Cathy. “What are we going to do?” She asked simply.

“For tonight? You need to take care of your cousin.” Something in Cathy’s gaze hardened. She glanced back at the school, and for a moment, she swore it turned into the music hall.

“Tomorrow, we’re going back to the Palace.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translate:  
> Kätzchen = kitty
> 
> ——————————
> 
> So remember how I said you guys would want to burn Mannox? Yeah... just, yeah...
> 
> Also I’m having a bit of trouble with the reincarnation. I mean, how do you even go about accepting something like that? I think I’m too used to writing the queens when they already know… So yeah, it was a bit anticlimactic… but for them, it’s like it just suddenly made sense. They can clearly see that it’s true and now they remember both lives.
> 
> They’ll definitely talk more about it, probably after Mannox is dealt with.
> 
> And sorry if that beginning seemed a little weird, they would have talked more about the app, but reincarnation became a more pressing matter. That should be brought up next chapter, even if it doesn’t really need much explanation now.
> 
> ——————————
> 
> Morgana real cat form:  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/2/2d/P5_portrait_of_Morgana%27s_cat_form.png/revision/latest?cb=20200610092453


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Hound begins her hunt. Cathy and Anne have a talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: threats (hostage), mentioned/past rape, self-esteem issues

While Cathy had to unfortunately separate from the group, Anne and Anna took Kat back home to her and Anne’s place. From what Cathy gathered, the cousins’s Step-Grandmother had been there. Luckily, they had played it off to a bad day and Anna was allowed to stay. From there, the night had been comfort. Morgana had remained behind at the school, awaiting the others arrival tomorrow.

As for Cathy, her godparents had been home and tried to question her about school. Cathy answered the questions simply before hiding away in her room. She could only write, locking herself away in that familiar other world. But all dreams came to an end, and school was tomorrow.

Kat had to go to school as well. Between the Step-Grandmother and Kat herself, the others had no choice but to let her go. They supposed Kat wanted to busy herself to forget.

The only reason the other three relented and let her go instead of ferrying her back home after the Step-Grandmother left was because she didn't have a class with Mannox that day.

All three had the same thought of how used to it Kat seemed… the only new difference being that they now knew.

Mannox was fucked.

~~||~~||~~

Immediately after school, Cathy and Anne met up with Morgana. They were done debating. What they witnessed sealed their decision.

“Both if you are sure about this?” Morgana asked, perched on the familiar bench. “The mental shutdown is still a possibility.”

“I don’t care about the risk anymore. Je vais lui faire payer!” Anne hissed out.

“There’s no more question about it, Morgana.” Cathy stated. She stared at the school. “I refuse to let anyone get away with that. Teach us what we need to know.”

“Very well… just remember, we’re not attacking him. We’re going in to steal his treasure.” Morgana told them, narrowing his eyes.

“You’ve got it.” Anne huffed, clearly wishing she could do the opposite. “So, how quickly can we get this done. We’ve gotta get it done by early May, that’s when the teacher meeting is. You’ve done this all before, yeah?”

Morgana paused, looking at her quizzically. “When did I ever say that…?”

“Wait… then how do you already know everything?” Cathy asked cautiously.

“I don’t know… I just do.” Morgana actually looked a little conflicted himself. Then he shook his head, looking back up to the two humans. “So, are we going to do this or not?!”

Anne and Cathy clearly looked like they wanted to continue. But the urgency of Mannox stopped them.

“Can I open it?” Anne asked a little eagerly as she pulled out her phone. She had been given the app, but this was her first chance at using the Metaverse Navigator herself.

“Go right ahead.” Cathy agreed easily, nodding her head with a chuckle.

“The moment we cross over, we’ll treat each other like Phantom Thieves. So I hope you’re ready.” Morgana spoke up.

“So we’ll become Phantom Thieves now?” Cathy asked.

“That sounds pretty cool!” Anne smirked, rocking from foot to foot.

Morgana gave them a wide, smug grin. “Those who sneak in and stylishly steal treasure, that is what we become!”

“Alright then!” Anne turned her attention back to the phone. “So back to this thing… we put in Mannox’s name… the school… and then Music hall… after that, we end up at that creepy world!” She looked up to both Morgana and Cathy. “Time to take Mannox down a peg!”

And then, they activated the navigation.

They never noticed a familiar red leather jacket following. Staying several steps behind them even in the Metaverse, hidden from their view.

She wasn’t going to stay seated when those two obviously had a way to get back at Mannox…

~~||~~||~~

“Alright!” Anne glared at the music hall. All three were back in their Phantom Thief outfits and forms. “Time to make Mannox pay!”

Morgana nodded and glanced up to Cathy. “I’m counting on you especially, Joker.”

“Joker?” Both Cathy and Anne spoke up.

“Her codename!” Morgana looked very proud of himself. “What kind of Phantom Thieves would use their actual names?! Besides, we don’t know the effect of yelling out real names!”

“Yeah, okay… but Joker?” Anne squinted. She couldn’t see the reason.

Morgana puffed up. “She’s our trump card when it comes to fighting strength!”

Cathy winced. “Sorry Morgana… but I don't really think it’s me. And the both of you are just as strong.”

Morgana deflated a little, but nodded at her reasoning. “I… alright, then what were you thinking?”

Cathy paused. This codename stuff had been sprung on her rather quickly. What could make a good codename? Author?

“What about Survivor?”

Cathy jolted and looked to Anne. It was the green clad thief that spoke. “Survivor…?”

“Yeah, like a way to honor your last life. Plus, it sounds pretty badass for a thief!” Anne explained. “And it can go for this life too! You were the reason we survived that day, y’know…”

Cathy pondered it for a moment. Survivor… so many memories came back for that name. But… Cathy liked it. It showed she made it. Past Henry, even past Thomas and death itself. And she survived Mannox too, saving Anne in the process. And now, she would help others become survivors themselves.

“I like it. Thank you, Anne.” Cathy gave her a small smile. Anne beamed happily.

“Survivor it is then!” Morgana had looked curious at the words ‘past life’ but clearly decided to just move past it. He too looked approving of the codename. “Now, as for Anne…”

Cathy decided to return the favor. “Ghost.”

Anne blinked but actually looked happy with the codename. “Ghost, huh?”

“Yes.” Cathy tilted her head. “You defied death itself. ‘Curse magic,’ as Morgana called it, helps my case as well. But you have your scar, and I would also say revenge can symbolize haunting someone. Like Mannox…”

Cathy could really go on with her symbolism. But she stopped as Anne smiled widely at her and even Morgana looked a little impressed.

“Ghost it is!” Anne grinned, practically vibrating with both energy and happiness. “Thanks Cath— I mean, Survivor!”

“Alright, Survivor and Ghost!” Morgana smirked at both of them. “Now what about me?!”

“I guess it would be unfair to leave you out…” Cathy hummed. “What about Mona?”

Morgana bristled. “That’s just my name shortened!”

“It was the only thing I could think of. I know you don’t like being called a cat.”

Anne chimed in. “Hey, why don’t you just change it later if you think of something better?”

Morgana paused at both of their words. “Alright… I suppose I can work with that, thanks you two! From here on out, we’ll be Survivor, Ghost, and Mona! Make sure to keep using the codename as long as we’re in the Palace!”

They swiftly head for their familiar window entry point. They made their way through and paused in the doorway to the entrance hall. For Mannox and a large group of guards stood inside.

“I want you to keep an eye out for those thieves!” Mannox snapped, glaring at his guards. “From this point forward, it’s kill on sight, with a reward for each thief killed.”

“For the great conductor!” The guards cried before dispersing.

Ghost growled, glancing to the others. “You guys sure we can’t just… take him out now?”

“With those soldiers?! That’s suicide!” Mona hissed at her. “And besides, wouldn’t confession be a greater satisfaction? Seeing him confess to everything he did to your cousin and those other students?”

Ghost looked back out to Mannox, who was beginning to walk away. “Yeah…”

“Then there's no point to just attacking him now. We need to steal his materialized desires, his treasure.”

“So that’s what we’re stealing…” Survivor nodded. “The desires themselves. That’s why a mental shutdown could be caused.”

“Hey… aren’t there rumors and stories going around about those?” Ghost asked carefully.

“I’m not entirely sure.” Survivor hummed. “Why don’t we keep going? Mona, where can we find his treasure?”

“It’s somewhere in the depths of this music hall. Now’s the perfect time to search further inside. He’s too busy looking for us around here.” Mona swiftly led them down another path, away from Mannox and his guards.

They made their way down several new halls, going through the residential area towards where they connected to the classrooms.

They stopped outside a dining room. Survivor opened the door and quickly jumped back around the corner at the sight of a guard.

“Merde, that was close!” Ghost whispered, placing a steadying hand on Survivor’s shoulder.

“Well, now’s a good time to teach you more about all-out-attacks! They’re useful for more than just attacking. Survivor, get its mask!” Mona told the both of them.

Survivor nodded at the order and quickly darted around the corner again.

The fight quickly ensued, the guard becoming a familiar blue-dressed fairy like they had seen back in the classrooms.

“Those hold-ups? They can be used to get money from shadows too! After all, these shadows are born from people’s hearts, which means they can talk just like a person! Of course, they don’t want to die, so there’s a good chance we can get money or other loot from them as offerings.”

Survivor and Ghost both nodded at Morgana’s teachings. Survivor fired a bullet, sending the shadow sprawling to the ground before the three quickly leapt into a hold-up position. The three drew their weapons, Survivor’s revolver, Mona’s slingshot, and Ghost had three shuriken in hand.

The fairy yelped. “Gah, seriously?! You three are the intruders the great conductor was talking about?! What do you want from me?!”

Survivor regarded her for a moment. “Give us an item. Something useful.”

“What?! I just need to give you something?!”

“Something like that… money or items, cough it up!” Mona declared, slingshot being pulled back tighter.

The fairy chuckled a little nervously. “Well you see… I don’t have anything on me…”

All three thieves paused. Mona seemed a bit dumbstruck, Survivor blinked, and Ghost coughed to disguise a laugh.

“This… this isn’t going as planned…” Survivor and Ghost could hear Mona whisper to himself. Survivor herself seemed a bit amused and Ghost had to hide another laugh.

Mona quickly tried to recover. “Hm, I suppose it can’t be helped in that case. Time for you to go to hell.”

The fairy squeaked in fear. “Wait, what?!”

“We’re in a rush.” Mona said simply.

“Wait, Wait! Can’t we work something out? Please don’t kill me, can I just go and say nothing?!”

Survivor considered her words for a moment. She seemed scared enough to say nothing. “Very well.”

The fairy perked up. “Are you the type who can’t say no? I’m the same way actually, so I totally get how that feels!”

Before anyone could say something else, something happened with the fairy.

“Hey, wait a sec… I feel different.” Blue magic began to envelope around the fairy as it flew back up into the air.

Survivor and Ghost both pulled their weapons up, ready for anything. Mona did the same, looking very confused by the current events. “What’s going on?!” The furred thief questioned.

Remembrance snapped in the fairy’s eyes. “That’s right! I don’t just serve the great conductor! I am an existence that drifts about the sea of humanity’s souls…” her gaze turned to Survivor. “My real name is Pixie! From now on, I’ll live inside your heart!”

The blue magic swirled around Pixie until she became a glowing blue mask, the same shape as Survivor’s own. That mask quickly merged with Survivor’s own.

Survivor blinked, a hand drifting up to her mask. Just like Athena, she could feel Pixie’s presence now. Mona was actively gaping at her and Ghost seemed very curious and surprised.

“Wh… what was that?!” Mona questioned.

“So the enemy merging with Survivor’s mask definitely isn’t normal?” Ghost asked Mona, pointing at Survivor.

“Not at all! I wasn’t expecting that to happen either!” Mona exclaimed.

Survivor herself simply watched both of them, similarly confused. But before she could speak at all, another guard came slamming through the door.

“The intruders!” He lifted his baton. “I’ll be getting that reward!”

The three thieves quickly moved out of the way as the guard’s transformation occurred, causing him to turn into the familiar, horned horse from before Ghost’s awakening.

Staring down the enemy, Survivor felt something tug at her heart. It was the new presence that rested alongside Athena… Pixie.

Survivor quickly pulled her mask away. But instead of Athena being summoned, it was the familiar form of Pixie.

“Zio!” Survivor called out. Pixie giggled and obeyed, a strike of lighting being super effective on the shadow.

“The shadow we fought a second ago!” Ghost realized.

“Wait… did you take in that shadow’s appearance and powers as a Persona?!” Mobs shook his head. “We’ll deal with that in a minute! Let’s take it out!”

They entered the hold-up position. But before they could perform an all-out-attack, Survivor stopped them. “Wait, I want to test this.”

Ghost and Mona both paused before carefully nodding. “Hey, you’re our guide when it comes to battles, I’m with you!” Ghost told Survivor with a smirk.

Survivor gave her a nod and turned back to the downed shadow.

“You little shits... what are ya making me do?!”

“I want you to lend me your power.” Survivor said simply, revolver still trained on the shadow.

The beast snickered. “That’s your move? We’re taking first. Then I’ll decide if I’ll help ya out.”

The talk went on for a long minute. Survivor agreed with the beast, appealing to its side and personality. It paid off in the end, as the same thing as what happened with Pixie occurred.

“I’m no shadow from this place!” The beastly shadow reared back on it’s hooves proudly. “I used to be livin in that sea of the human soul!” It dipped its head in greeting to Survivor. “From now on, call me Bicorn. No need for honorifics, lassie.”

With a familiar blue glow, Bicorn also merged into Survivor’s mask. She felt his presence just like she felt Pixie and Athena’s.

“Holy…! Can you wield more than one persona?!” Mona yowled, wide eyed.

Ghost’s shocked expression turned into a laugh. “Well, look who’s overpowered! Seriously, are you the main character or something?!”

“Ah… I wouldn’t say I’m overpowered…”

Mona was muttering to himself, loud enough for the other two to clearly hear. “She sealed the enemy’s appearance and powers into her mask… making them new Personas… I didn’t even know it was possible!”

“I would say this is a good thing.” Survivor spoke, giving Mona a glance.

“It definitely is! Only one heart exists for one person, so normally, a persona can only have one persona! Your power… this will give us a huge advantage!” Mona practically purred, looking very pleased with this new development.

“Alright, then it looks like we’ll have to do more negotiations. They’re just as good for you to get Personas as they are for money!” Ghost gave Survivor a proud grin.

Survivor nodded back to both of them. “I’ll do my best. Shall we keep moving?”

With determined nods, the group continued their path. They explored for about another hour, finding money and fighting shadows along the way.

Soon enough, they came across where the residential areas merged into the classrooms. Right at that connection, they found a safe room and quickly took advantage of it, all collapsing into chairs or on the table.

“These safe rooms are a lifesaver!” Ghost called out, leaning back in her chair.

“So Mona, how are we supposed to steal the treasure?” Survivor asked leaning forward to rest her arms on the table. Ghost also lowered her head to glance at Mona.

“First thing’s first, we’ll need to secure an infiltration route.”

“You mean a path taking us right to the treasure, yeah?” Ghost questioned.

“That’s correct. It would be nice to have another person though at the very least. Just to give us more power.” Mona hummed with a frown, tail swishing in thought.

“So you remember all of this, and yet… you’ve lost your memories?” Survivor asked Mona. “I believe you of course…”

“We’re just a bit confused.” Ghost continued, nodding along.

Mona tensed. “I’m afraid I don’t know myself…”

Survivor and Ghost glanced to each other.

Ghost stretched. “Hey… We’ll still help you get your memories back, yeah? And you can help us steal Mannox’s treasure in return… I’m— we’re gonna make him pay!”

“Deal!” Mona perked up, giving them a confident grin.

Cathy stood from her chair. “What do you say we get back to it. Maybe we can get a little further before heading out for the day.”

“Sounds like a plan to me!”

“Let’s do it!”

Across the hall, a new area branched off from the intersection between the classrooms and the residential area. That was where the thieves went next, eventually coming across a large security room.

The security room was grey, monitors and computers set up throughout. But there was a wide space at the top of the steps and in the middle of the consoles to stand. The three thieves look around curiously before wandering over to a computer.

“Hey look, a map of the area!” Mona pointed out a piece of paper next to it. “This will be useful for planning our route to the treasure. We should keep an eye out for these, alright?”

But before Survivor could respond, Ghost spoke up.

“Shouldn’t security be in here?” Ghost asked, eyes narrowed in suspicion. Mona and Survivor’s eyes both widened in realization.

“Do you think this is a trap?” Survivor looked to Mona.

“This is rather odd… let’s look around then get out of here.” Mona directed.

“Agreed.” Survivor nodded her head, pocketing the map.

They looked around quickly. Once they found everything they could take and use, they gathered together, looking over everything very quickly before leaving.

“Stay where you are!”

The three thieves spun around to find Mannox accompanied by three guards. One held a very familiar face in its arms. Three pairs of eyes widened.

“Anna?!”

Mannox himself held a knife, pointed directly at Anna’s throat. “I found a fourth little thief sneaking around… following you three actually. What, did you forget about your teammate?”

“She followed us into the Palace?! Does that app pull in anyone nearby…?” Mona hissed, tail swishing and ears against his head.

“Dammit! Why would you do that?!” Ghost cried out.

“I wanted to get back at Mannox too!” Anna explained, eyes narrowed at the man, but there was a noticeable fear in her eyes.

Survivor was quietly panicking and calculating. They were stuck. If they made any move, Mannox could easily slice Anna’s neck.

“You just love to piss me off more and more, huh?” Ghost snarled at Mannox, ready to leap forward the second she had the opportunity.

“I would suggest dropping your weapons.” Mannox told them. They hesitated, but the knife inched closer to skin, urging them to drop their weapons to the ground. “Good, good…”

“Dammit! We can’t do anything!” Mona hissed out. Survivor felt her irritation rise quickly, Mona didn’t need to remind her!

Anna’s eyes narrowed onto Mannox. “If you think for a second I’ll let you get away with what you did, then you’re mistaken!”

“What I did?” Mannox scoffed. “Everyone loves when I pleasure them! I get to do as I please… what about you? If what I did was so bad then why did you let it happen?”

“What… I didn’t—!”

“You’ve been here since the start of it all, and yet you didn’t say a word!”

“I didn’t know what was happening—!”

“You had every single chance to say something! So why didn’t you!” Mannox snapped mockingly, a grin stretched across his face. “I’d say that’s pretty shitty friendship!”

Anna remained silent this time, head lowered and eyes darkened. She knew he was right. It was something she had been thinking on and her thoughts led her to the same conclusion. But hearing it out loud… that hurt worse.

“Are you going to listen to him?! What I saw back in the gym… that was yours and Kat’s friendship! Are you really going to let him get away with hurting Kat, someone you clearly care about so much?!” It was Survivor who asked, face sealed with determination.

A small spark returned to Anna’s eyes. “What?”

A sharp pain to her skull had Anna crying out in the shadow’s arms.

“She’s right.” A voice whispered. “He hurt your friend. Are you going to let him get away with that?”

Anna trashed wildly, the shadows arms keeping her in place.

“Your loyalty is one of your greatest possessions, and you’re going to simply let such injustice fly?” The voice proclaimed.

Mannox’s eyes went wide with familiarity towards what was happening. He backed up, knife moving away with him.

“With these thieves, you could form a pack of hunters and hunt that pathetic coward like the monster he is.” The voice hardened. “Are you really going to pass up that opportunity?”

Anna growled, legs kicking the shadow in her thrashing state. The shadow didn’t release its grip.

“Harming a young maiden like he did… I will certainly never forgive him. So what about you? Will you let his cowardly act go unpunished?”

“Nein!” Anna roared. “Er hat sie verletzt! He was the one who caused her pain, not me!” Her head slammed back into the shadow’s mask.

The shadow finally dropped her in a panic, the power surge and the sudden hit startling it. Anna managed to keep on her knees, hands going to support her. Her eyes flashed a brilliant golden yellow.

“I am thou… thou art I! You who is willing to hunt down and destroy injustice and mistreatment alongside your fellow hunters… I grant you my power!”

A red masquerade mask adorned with sparkling red and black jewelry appeared around the now golden eyes.

Still on her knees, Anna managed to lean back so she wasn’t on all fours. She took a deep, shuddered breath accompanied with a deep chuckle… then, with one swift pull, her mask was torn off, leading to blood that turned to blue flames.

Anna carefully climbed to her feet, eyes closed.

She now wore an attire of black and red. Shorts and a cut top, with straps forming an ‘x’ over her chest holding the latter up, that seemed to glimmer black and red. Her jacket was the same color, the black actually being fur, with short puffy shoulders similar to Anne’s. She had similar black sleeves to Anne’s as well, but they extended up past her elbows, still not connecting to the outfit. The outfit was complete with heeled boots and a silver, spiked crown that sat atop her head.

A battle axe rested on one shoulder, her hand easily coming up to hold it. A rifle was strapped to her back as well.

Anna’s eyes snapped open and she surveyed the shadows, all of which had backed away warily, remembering the last time they had witnessed something like this.

Standing with Anna was her Persona, staring down the enemies with a calculating and vengeful gaze.

Compared to the other Personas, she was rather short and looked younger, but the glowing eyes remained the same. A bow and arrow was held in her hands.

The blue fire around her formed shapes. Nymphs dancing, different types of wild animals could be seen chasing each other in the fire. The blue fire formed the spirit of a hunting dog which remained by the Persona’s side.

“Let’s hunt this mutt down, Artemis!” Anna declared. “Bufu!”

Artemis heeded her summoner’s wish, drawing her bow. The arrow was fired and turned into ice magic, viciously freezing the guard it was aimed at. That guard dissipated.

Mannox growled upon seeing the new, strong thief. His eyes were still filled with fear, just like how he looked the last two times he witnessed an awakening. Anna raised her axe to her shoulder.

The elite guard that had been at Mannox’s side was quickly leaping forward. He shifted in the shadows and became a monster.

A rather strange one at that.

Perched atop a toilet was a demon. Grey skin and a silver beard. He wore golden gloves and boots. A thin tail swished behind him. Long horns pointed straight up from his head.

The demon kept to the center of the room facing down the thieves. Once again, Mannox was escorted out.

As Mannox reached the door, a throwing knife buried itself into the wall inches from his face. He let out a startled yelp and glanced back, wide eyed to see Ghost.

She stared right back at Mannox. A malicious grin was on her face. That knife wasn’t meant to hit.

It was a warning.

The guards moved him faster and Mannox was swiftly removed from the room. The elite guard roared at them.

“I’ll never let you hurt our great conductor!”

Anna’s eyes narrowed. “Then it looks like I’ll just have to strike you down first!”

“Well put! Let’s do this!” Mona called out, readying his own blade.

“Eiha!” Ghost cried out first. The magic hit the demon, but barely did any damage. The demon shook it off and laughed.

“Zio!” Survivor called out, summoning Pixie to her side. Lighting struck the demon. It did more damage to the demon but clearly wasn’t a super effective magic.

Instead of using his magic, Mona leapt forward. His sword slashed at the demon, having a similar effect as Survivor’s magic. The cat quickly leapt backwards as the demon swiped.

But then, Anna called out her own attack. “Bufu!” The ice was a clear weakness of the demon.

Survivor swiftly summoned Athena. “Frei!” Nuclear damage was also a strength.

Before Survivor could call for an all-out-attack, the demon summoned its magic. “Dia!” The shadow growled, the magic sparked around him and the shadow’s wounds healed again.

“Merde… he can heal!” Ghost snapped.

Anna huffed, raising her axe again. “Then we’ll just have to strike faster.”

But before they could, the demon reared back and prepared a blast of magic.

They didn’t have but half a second to react. Survivor was swiftly grabbing Ghost and Anna grabbed Mona.

“Magaru!”

The large blast of wind magic sent all of them rocketing backwards. Directly into the wall with Survivor and Anna taking the impact.

The demon laughed and everyone managed to pull themselves forward to hide behind a metal console. Mona was swiftly healing Survivor and Anna with the medicine they had on them.

“We need to end this fast.” Survivor said, already thinking of a plan. “Ghost, he resists your magic, can you distract him long enough for Anna and I to strike?”

Ghost grinned at her. “Just give the word!”

Survivor nodded and glanced to Anna and Mona. “Mona, I want you to go out and use your slingshot, help Ghost distract. Anna, he’s weak to our spells, we’re going to strike him down at the same time. I’ll go first and you can follow up. Try not to stay too close, but close enough to help each other if needed.”

The thieves nodded with determined looks at Survivor’s strategy.

They swiftly put it into action. Ghost leapt out from behind the console, making her way around the room while calling out taunts. The demon growled at her and turned to follow her movements as she made her way to the opposite side of the room. Mona was quickly jumping out as well and perching himself on a table to the far right, firing pellets from his slingshot.

“You fools!” The demon roared out, looking from cat to human.

Survivor and Anna rolled out from behind the console and gave no time for the demon to react or heal.

“Frei!”

“Bufu!”

Both Magics hit the demon at the same time with a stunning force.

But the demon wasn’t finished, hunched over on his toilet. Instead he charged one last magic attack. The demon knew they would simply strike him down again, and his healing wouldn’t do much in his weak state. The only option in his eyes was to take a thief down with him. So he poured all of his remaining magic into one last Magaru. The attack meant for multiple people was aimed right towards Survivor.

But right before he could unleash it, a shot from a rifle hit him right between the eyes. The already weak demon groaned.

“You… you thieves shall not win against our great conductor!”

And with that, he dissolved.

Survivor glanced around to find Anna. The girl was holding her rifle in hand and grinning at Survivor, giving her a thumbs up. The blue clad thief blinked back thankfully, dipping her head.

~~||~~||~~

From there, they retreated for the day, praising Cathy’s strategy and Anna’s awakening as they went. Anna had just awakened and then proceeded to use her magic for the elite guard. So they were forced out for the day through exhaustion. But none of them were particularly angry.

They had a new member. One just as determined as they were.

“Now we have a good team for the Palace!” Morgana meowed happily.

“Welcome to the team, Anna. Are you sure you want in?” Cathy asked cautiously.

“I watched my best friend be violated by a teacher when I could have done something.” A glare fixed on Anna’s face. “I’m doing something about it now.”

Anne gave her a nod. “Good answer! He’s going to pay.”

“Just explain that world and tell me what I need to do.” Anna said, crossing her arms.

“Why don’t we save that for tomorrow?” Morgana spoke up. “I’m sure you’re tired after awakening your persona!”

“Yeah, I am pretty beat… meet here tomorrow?” Anna asked.

“Maybe… we might make it a break day to explain everything and then we can stay with Kat… I think some company would do her good.” Cathy spoke up, a contemplative look on her face.

“I think Chaton would appreciate that… ever since we found out, she’s been quieter… I’m worried.” Anne frowned back at the school. “I think the sooner we deal with Mannox the better.”

Morgana agreed eagerly. “Especially with that teachers meeting in a month you guys mentioned as a deadline… early May.”

“Sounds like a plan to me. Hey, I guess we should trade numbers, yeah?” Anna directed her question to Cathy. The blue clad teen nodded quickly and they both pulled their phones out.

“Oh crap!” Anne suddenly remembered something. “So… if you get a dream about dying, we’re pretty sure that’s normal for us…”

Morgana’s face twisted into confusion. “What? That’s not normal at all!”

“Not for you.” Cathy shook her head. “For those of us named after the queens. We think… we’re reincarnated.”

Anna stared at them. “You’ve got to be kidding me…”

“Listen… it doesn’t make a lot of sense right now. But if we’re right? Then things will make a whole lot more sense after the dreams and visions.”

“Dreams? Visions? You’ve got to be fucking with me…” Anna glared at both of them, but took in the serious faces.

“We’re not… please just trust us.” Cathy pleaded, pulling her bag further up on her shoulder.

“You’re sure it’s reincarnation?” Morgana huffed. “Maybe it’s just weird dreams…”

“Yeah but visions? Look, we know the two of us have been reincarnated. It just clicked.” Anne looked a little irritated. “So can you please trust us?”

Morgana still looked a little suspicious but nodded.

“Alright… I’ll tell you if anything happens.” Anna agreed, giving the two a small smile. “I just watched you guys beat up monsters with your own summoned beings. I guess reincarnation wouldn’t be completely insane…”

Anne perked up. “That’s what I said!”

The reminder of reincarnation brought something back to Cathy’s mind. Elizabeth and Anne. And that was when Cathy knew she needed to tell Anne.

If they were going to fight together against Mannox, then Anne needed to know.

Yes, fear and anxiety were trying to push back against her. Stop her. But Cathy knew this needed to be done.

One hand clenched at her arm as she felt her anxiety rise. “Anne? Can we talk? Privately?”

“Of course! Are you okay?” She asked, observing Cathy’s anxiety.

“I’m… I’m fine.” She was very much not fine. “Morgana, can you escort Anna home?”

“Actually, is it alright if I go see Kätzchen? If you two are going to be a bit then I don’t want to leave her alone.”

Anne perked up. “That would be great! Father and Agnes are out so you should be fine. They had some stupid conference to go to or whatever.”

Anna chuckled. “Maybe you can join us, Morgana? I think Kat might appreciate a furry friend to be comforted by.”

Morgana bristled. “I am not some dumb cat wanting to be petted!” Then, he seemed to calm slightly. “But… I may as well grace you and your friend with my presence.”

Most of the group chuckled at that and with a farewell, the two thieves were off, leaving Anne and Cathy alone. They stood there for a moment. Cathy kept her gaze to the floor and Anne was watching Cathy in concern.

Before Anne could say something, Cathy spoke up. “I… before we can go any further. There’s something we need to talk about. With the reincarnation.”

Anne seemed to see something in Cathy’s gaze. “Yeah, okay. Come on, let’s sit down over here.”

They sat there for a moment. Anne was about to ask what the problem was when Cathy’s mouth opened.

“In our past lives… Thomas… the man I married after Henry… he… I thought I loved him, truly I did… but Anne… he hurt Elizabeth… he tried to be with her sexually…”

Cathy had rushed to get it out as quickly as she could. Dread, fear, and pure guilt and sadness pooled in her stomach. A feeling of sickness accompanied it, if it was a phantom pain or due to her anxiety and guilt, Cathy wasn’t sure.

There was a long moment's pause before Cathy looked to Anne.

Anne’s eyes and mouth were wide with horror at the information she just learned. She moved to speak, only for Cathy to slowly add something else.

“And I helped him…”

“What… you what?!” Anne spat out before managing to hold back her rage. It was a great effort, she never held back that anger before. A million emotions swirled in her mind.

Cathy flinched and a tear glided down her face. This was exactly what she feared happening. She remembered the overloads she would have when Henry and Thomas yelled. This time, with Anne, she would deserve it. But in the back of her mind, Cathy figured maybe she deserved her husbands’ anger too. That single tear became sobbing and weeping.

Anne wanted to scream and rage. She wanted to hurt Cathy just like she wanted to hurt Mannox… but… unlike Mannox (and everyone else who had turned out to be absolute scum), Cathy was crying. Anne was watching Cathy breakdown over this. The same Cathy who saved her life and was trying to help her avenge her cousin.

For once, Anne managed to stamp down the rage. She still felt cold anger, but this was Cathy… she needed to know…

“Tell me why.”

“I don’t… you wouldn’t understand.”

“Cathy. This is my daughter. And I need you to explain why you did it. Because I’ve grown to trust you so much, but this… this is my daughter. Did you mean to hurt her?”

Cathy’s head snapped up. Anne was frowning, but she was still talking to Cathy, something that encouraged the other teen.

Cathy was still hunched over on the bench, her scalp clutched tight under her nails. “I didn’t… I didn’t think he would…” Cathy managed to wheeze out. “I was only there for those two times… I didn't know the full extent… and... and… after Henry, I was scared to speak out. I was an idiot who played along!”

Her gaze snapped up to Anne’s face. “I… I know I’m making excuses… but I—!” She broke off into a sob.

“What do you mean by scared, Somnolente?”

By all accounts, Anne would normally be beyond furious. But this was Cathy for god’s sake. And she wanted so, so desperately for Cathy to be innocent.

“Henry… arrest warrant.” Cathy managed to gasp out.

Anne’s eyes flashed with realization and she was quickly kneeling in front of Cathy. “Hey, hey. It’s okay, Somnolente. I get that part completely. After being arrested for speaking, you tend to stay quiet, huh?” Anne felt anger spark, but less towards Cathy and more towards Henry. The coward tried to execute Cathy too...

Cathy nodded shakily with another sob. “Pregnant.”

“So you were also pregnant at the time…” Anne considered. Her rage slowly eased back down the more she learned.

Yeah, Cathy fucked up. Big time. But unlike Mannox, Henry, or any of the other assholes who did what they did for no good reason. Cathy had reasons as to why she couldn’t help. Fear seemed to be the most prominent. The time wasn’t good either… they were oppressed and forced to survive. Anne knew that first hand. And she wasn't even the main abuser! No… that right went to Thomas, and that man better hope to god he never meets Anne face to face.

“Hey, Cathy.” Anne began soothing upon seeing the other girl’s breathing pick up again. “I need you to breathe with me, okay? Breathe in, and out… that’s right…”

Cathy shakily followed the movements, her mind running rampant. Soon, Anne managed to calm Cathy, taking hold of the girl’s hands to prevent her from hurting herself.

“Why are you being so nice?” Cathy managed to ask. “I hurt her…”

“I know… it wasn’t your fault.” Anne said slowly, considering the question herself. “Maybe, somehow, a tiny bit could have been your fault, you— no, we were hurt and abused and just stuck in horrible situations that forced us to choose bad options... but innocent or guilty, whatever happened, you know what makes you different from those bastards?”

Cathy sniffed and numbly shook her head.

“You’re trying to atone. And that’s why I forgive you.” Anne gave her a shaky grin, quickly finding herself rambling a bit. “Why else did you tell me all of this? And if you were scum, why did you start crying over it? Scum wouldn’t cry. You’re better than them, Cathy. And I know you’ll redeem yourself.”

Anne pulled her into a hug. “And telling me all of this. Apologizing to her mother when you couldn’t apologize to her… I think that’s a damn good first step. And what about Mannox? You’re helping take down assholes just like that. Preventing more situations like that… that right there is atonement.”

The only thing Cathy could do was cry. She sat there with Anne for what seemed like hours. Until the sun started to set. She sat there and cried out centuries of sorrow.

Henry. Thomas. Elizabeth. It all seemed to flood out at once.

And Anne… Anne who, by all accounts, should hate her right now… sat with her and comforted her.

“Sorry…” Cathy mumbled. For Elizabeth or the crying, she didn’t know. Maybe both.

Anne didn’t either but seemed to go with the former. “You’re already apologizing through helping with Mannox. Cathy, you are not a bad person.”

“Am I really?”

“Cathy, I just watched you cry over Elizabeth… you made a big ass mistake, but you’re already trying to redeem yourself. However many times I need to say it, I will. You are not a bad person.”

Faintly, Anne thought back to her own past life. Catalina… Mary… the men… Cathy wasn’t scum. That right probably belonged to Anne. She would have to work on her own atonement, it seemed. But that wasn’t the focus of this conversation.

“Yeah… I’ll admit that it may take me a bit to fully forgive you… but you’ve been nothing but a friend since I’ve met you, and I know that eventually, maybe tomorrow or maybe in a month, I’ll forgive you.” Anne gave her a grin. “After all… we have to help others escape from oppression, yeah?”

Cathy nodded her head, gaze hardening. “This time, I refuse to let something like that happen again. This time, I’m going to free people from their chains.”

“Well, someone’s still a writer!” Anne laughed.

“Yes I am. And you’re wiser than you let on.” Cathy breathed out. She was tired from crying, but this conversation took a soothing turn that she appreciated.

“Maybe so, but my grades still suck.” Anne glanced up the darkening sky. “It’s getting pretty late, I've gotta get you home before Catalina strikes me down!”

Cathy let out a tiny laugh that made Anne beam.

“You don’t have to…”

“I want to though… consider it me showing you that I still care for you.”

Yeah… Elizabeth was going to be hard for them. But they talked before it could fester and become worse. Or before Anne found out a different way from Cathy. And just like before, they agreed to have each other’s back.

~~||~~||~~

They barely managed to make the last ride. Both of them dried the last of their tears and stuck together as the tube drove towards the Aragon household.

During the train ride, Anne carefully asked Cathy to tell her about Elizabeth. What she was like. Anne smiled as Cathy’s face lit up and she began to tell Anne stories.

Yeah… Anne knew that Cathy could be forgiven.

They soon reached the house. Cathy still looked a little depressed and the fact that she had cried was noticeable. So Cathy hung back a bit, but where she was visible to the door. Anne was the one who knocked.

Yes, Cathy had a key. But they figured it would be better to knock since it wasn’t just Cathy. (That and they forgot the key was present, but that wasn’t important)

In only a moment, Catalina had opened the door. Her eyes narrowed upon seeing Anne.

“I brought Cathy home.” Anne said simply, meeting Catalina’s stare.

Catalina looked past Anne to Cathy. Her gaze became colder. “I thought I told you what would happen if you hurt her.”

Anne cringed. This was not going the way she wanted it to. She needed to beat Mannox and comfort Cathy over Elizabeth. She couldn’t do either of those if Catalina killed her on the spot.

She also didn’t really want to repeat death. It wasn’t fun.

“She didn’t hurt me…” Cathy spoke up. “There was… something I did. We talked it over and she… forgave me.”

Catalina watched Cathy closely, as if searching for a lie. Finally, she nodded. She looked very curious as to what exactly Cathy was talking about, but didn’t push. “...very well.”

Then, she opened the door wider, gesturing for the two to come in. Cathy carefully made her way into the house, stopping to look back at Anne. The green clad teen stood there, clearly confused as to why the two were waiting for her.

“We don’t have any guest rooms, so you’ll have to either sleep on the couch or with Cathy.” Catalina told Anne, watching her cautiously.

Anne blinked in surprise. “You would let me spend the night?”

“Don’t bother me and it will be fine. My parents are out so I don't see any reason not to.” Catalina told her simply as Anne carefully stepped inside. “Besides, the tube is closed for the night anyways.” Then, Catalina vanished into her room.

Anne watched her go in surprise before turning back to Cathy. “Come on, let’s head up to your room. Then I can text Chaton and tell her I’ll be here with you.”

So they did. Anne insisted on taking the floor. Cathy only relented after making what was practically a nest with all of the blanket and pillows covering the floor.

For a while, they sat in a comfortable silence, Cathy writing at her desk and Anne curled up on the blanket pile.

Cathy bit her lip. “You’re sure you forgive me?”

Anne let out a small, sad laugh. “I do, Somnolente. You’ve redeemed yourself in my eyes. And again, worrying shows you aren’t scum. So I’ll say it however many times you need me to.” Anne paused slightly. “Yeah… it may take me a bit to get over completely, but for the most part, I forgive you. That’s a promise.”

Anne decidedly didn’t mention how much of a hypocrite she would be. Maybe she didn’t do what Cathy did… but Anne still hurt people, both to obey her father and simply survive in a very dark time. Catalina and Mary especially were hurt by her.

“And… what if I can’t forgive myself?”

“Then I’ll just keep telling you the truth. That you aren’t a monster.” Anne told her. “I’ve forgiven you, Somnolente. Now? You just need to focus on forgiving yourself.”

The next morning, they would eat breakfast with Catalina before going off to plan for the palace with Anna and Morgana. They explained everything to Anna, who turned out to be a quick learner for both the Metaverse and Reincarnation. Although, the latter wasn’t really needed and there weren’t many answers in the first place. It was the weekend, giving them plenty of time to keep Kat company and comfort her as well (observing how defeated Kat seemed only strengthened their resolve towards stopping Mannox).

As they moved about their day and preparations, both Anne and Cathy found themselves forgiving. Elizabeth was a wound deep in their hearts, but they were taking steps to start healing. They would help each other heal and atone through stopping Mannox. And that atonement included forgiving themselves and each other.

So that’s what they would do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translate:  
> Je vais lui faire payer = I’m going to make him pay  
> Nein = no  
> Er hat sie verletzt! = he hurt her!
> 
> ——————————
> 
> So, I got a little anxious about the Elizabeth scene, so I hope I did it justice. But that’s not the end of that, it will make a reappearance later on, even if only minor. Anne was very close to loosing her cool here, the only thing stopping that was that it was Cathy.
> 
> ——————————
> 
> Pixie:  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/d/dc/Devil_pixie.png/revision/latest?cb=20130525023128
> 
> Toilet demon:  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/4/42/Belphegor2.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20080806040210


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The thieves prepare for infiltration.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: implied (aftermath of) rape, minor breakdown (accompanied by scratching and biting)

It was the morning after Anna’s awakening and the talk concerning Elizabeth.

Anne and Cathy had eaten a tense breakfast with Catalina. But all three had to admit that it could have gone much worse. (Anne and Catalina could both admit to themselves that the only reason they weren’t arguing was solely because Cathy was present)

After the breakfast, Cathy and Anne talked peacefully as they made their way to the tube. They got on the crowded train, Cathy blocking out the chaotic and too loud noise with her headphones and phone. Anne was also busying herself with her own phone.

They reached the station that led to Anne’s house and got off, making their way towards the home.

As they walked, Cathy noticed that Anne was clearly irritated and overwhelmed by something (the writer never noticed the loud cheering from a group of people nearby). One hand was tugging at her choker, two fingers seemed to be scratching at her scar, her other hand was at her mouth, the end of Anne’s thumb being bitten between her teeth.

Cathy had noticed before now that Anne’s nails were basically nonexistent, and the ends of her fingers were definitely bitten before.

After observing the scene of distress for a moment, Cathy carefully slipped her soundproof headphones off. Then, as they walked, she carefully managed to slip the headphones over Anne’s ears. The noise from the subway was lowered to a more manageable level by now, and this area had less people.

Anne adjusted the headphones, turning to stare at Cathy. In response, Cathy simply held out her fidget cube.

It was something she had never done before. She had never let anyone hold her fidget toys. She never trusted anyone enough.

Anne blinked wide eyed for a moment before quickly taking the cube. Just like Cathy, she was quickly calmed by the object, focus captured.

Her mission accomplished, Cathy nodded happily to herself. She began to rub her soft sleeve instead. And it worked well enough.

They were quiet after that. They continued on until reaching Anne and Kat’s home. At the door, Anne gave Cathy a smile as she (hesitantly) returned the headphones and cube, which were slipped into Cathy’s bag.

“Thanks, Somnolente… I don’t really know what happened.”

“No need to apologize. We have each other’s backs.” Cathy repeated the phrase. Anne beamed at that and Cathy forced her own lips up into a small smile.

With that, they made their way inside.

Anna came down the stairs, Morgana next to her. “Morning, you two! Morgana wanted to talk very quick. I told Kat we’d join her in a minute.”

Anne furrowed her brows. “Is this a good idea? Kat could hear and I’d for sure rather not leave her alone.”

Morgana shook his head. “This won’t take but a moment.” At everyone’s attentive stares he continued. “I know we’re all eager to infiltrate the Palace. But there’s some business we need to do first.”

“Business?” Anna asked, raising an eyebrow.

“We need medicine and weapons.” Morgana spoke up.

Cathy perked up, remembering Catalina’s mention of there being a doctor down the street from their place. “I know of a possible place for medicine.”

“And hey, we need model weapons, right?” Anne spoke up. At Morgana’s nod she continued. “Well there’s a shop for those nearby here. Cathy and I passed it on our way from the station actually.”

“Then it’s simple enough, on my way home I’ll stop by the weapons shop and the doctors. I assume everyone will want the same weapon type as before.” Cathy asked, glancing at everyone.

“Yep!”

“Correct!”

“That’s right, Bücherwurm.”

Cathy glanced to Anna. “Bücherwurm?”

Anna chuckled at the slight mispronunciation. “It means bookworm. Is that alright?”

“Perfectly fine.” Cathy replied with a nod. Anna smiled at the acceptance.

“I call her Somnolente!” Anne gave Anna a smirk. “Now I’ll have to find you a nickname…”

“I look forward to it, Verrücktes Mädchen.” Anna said simply. She laughed at Anne’s very curious expression. “Crazy girl.”

Anne frowned for a second before it twitched up to a smirk. “That’s fair enough! I like it!”

Both of them knew that if it was anyone else, Anne would have rejected it immediately, seeing it as an insult. Anne seemed fairly irritable towards comments about her energy and anger levels. But Anne genuinely seemed to appreciate the nickname after her moment of irritation faded.

“Hey…” Anna spoke up, a little nervously. “I don’t have all of the memories yet, but I’m remembering everything. And I just wanted to ask if you two are okay.”

Cathy and Anne both watched her for a moment. “I think…” It was Cathy who spoke. “We’re doing as well as we can.”

Anne nodded. “With everything going on with Mannox… we agreed to talk about it after everything.”

Anna watched both of them carefully. “Alright… but if you two need anything, I’ll be here.”

Cathy tilted her head. “The same goes for you. I don’t think any of us are without trauma from that life…” Even if none of them wanted to speak about it. But still, they knew they would have to at some point.

Morgana sighed. “I still think this whole reincarnation thing is bizarre… but I’ll go along with it.” Before the queens could respond, Morgana hopped back up a few of the stairs. “Why don’t we all go back to Kat?” Morgana asked. “We’ve left her alone longer than necessary.”

That was all the teens needed to be spurred back into the pink teen’s room. Said girl perked up upon seeing all of them again.

Anna and Morgana moved to sit with Kat on the bed. Anne and Cathy moved to the desk, Cathy taking the chair and Anne sitting on the desk itself.

For a while, the conversation was peaceful. The tension from the past few days draining away. Kat still looked a little anxious and even scared, but was relaxing the more the conversation continued. Still… there was something in her posture and expression that betrayed just how calm and happy she seemed.

Kat also seemed to adore Morgana. The cat practically melted under her touch, something that amused every single person in the room. He may insist on not being a cat but it seemed he had the mannerisms.

“She’s really nice!” Morgana would go on to comment.

But soon, the conversation took another turn. Honestly, Cathy was very caught off guard by it. Somehow, it went to Henry.

“You know what’s funny, most of us have dated Henry.” Anna smirked.

“... Henry Tudor…?” Cathy whispered.

“Yeah…” Kat’s gaze shifted to the floor, the life seemed to drain from her eyes a bit as she was dragged back into memories.

Cathy didn’t notice as she looked urgently to Anne. “Anne.”

The girl‘s gaze glanced from her cousin to Cathy. She paused at both expressions, one traumatized and the other panicked. A nod from Anna, who stayed by Kat’s side with Morgana, led Anne to Cathy’s side. “What’s the matter, Somnolente?”

“Henry was my boyfriend’s friend. The one who…” Cathy mumbled, pausing slightly. Anna and Morgana listened with interest. “The one who forced me to date him and got me arrested…”

Anne’s eyes widened with realization. She suddenly recalled some of that conversation. “Holy fucking shit! That was him?!”

The other two straightened. “Forced to date?!” Morgana questioned in a bit of shock. Anna and Kat looked just as stunned, the latter jolted out of her memories by the volume and kept in the present by the revelation.

“He was the one who cheated on Catherine and spread the rumors about me!” Anne ignored the other presences in the room.

Cathy felt like she wanted to lash out. For fucks sake, this asshole followed her and the others from life to life… she was sick of him!

Cathy rose a fist to punch the desk. Anne was quickly reaching forward to grab Cathy’s arm. Cathy simply began hitting at her own leg with her free hand. Anne twisted so she had a grasp on both of Cathy’s hands.

“Woah, woah… I know, you really want to lash out at anything right now. But I don't want you to hurt yourself, okay? Just breath.” Anne managed to soothe. In reality, she wanted to lash out at something just like Cathy. She was trying to ground the both of them.

Faintly, Cathy could hear Anne explain everything to Anna, Kat, and Morgana. Cathy was glad for it. It meant she didn’t have to relieve the memories more than she was right now.

“Hey, Cathy. I’m sorry that bastard hurt you too…” Anna gave her a sad smile. “He met me online and after meeting in person, decided I was ugly and began throwing around rumors to his buddies.”

Cathy stared at her. For one, wasn’t that something similar to what Henry did in their past lives? Another thing, Henry hurt Anna too...

“I… we were dating when Mannox started…” Kat choked a bit on her breath. Everyone’s eyes widened a little bit in panic.

“Hey, Kätzchen, Mannox is gonna get what’s coming to him, I promise you.” Anna murmured. Making sure Kat could see her and what she was doing, the German gently pulled Kat into a warm embrace.

“How?” Kat mumbled into Anna’s shoulder. “I don’t… I can’t…”

Cathy made her way over and knelt in front of both of them. She gently tapped Kat’s knee before pulling away and making sure to avoid touch. Kat angled her head so she could see Cathy. Tears had begun falling and her breathing had picked up.

“Try to breathe slowly…” Cathy said simply. The other teen began inhaling and exhaling shaky breaths. But it was progress.

Cathy hummed sadly. “You’ve kept this hidden away for so long… haven’t you?”

Kat shakily nodded. “Few months… I thought… I didn’t have a way out… I just… I just gave up and let him have me…”

Cathy took a deep breath. “Now… you have a way out. I promise you, Mannox won’t get away with this.”

“How…” Kat sniffed, her body shaking. “How do you know that?”

Cathy’s fists tightened until her knuckles were white. “I don’t know.” She said bluntly. “But what I do know? You have people who care about you. Your cousin, your best friend… and hopefully you’ll consider me as well. You were one of the few who didn’t treat me like a freak or a criminal for my habits and past. You were kind to me, and now, I want to help you as well. I wouldn’t wish your situation on anyone, especially not someone so caring like you clearly are… I want to help, and I know for a fact that these two do as well.”

For a moment, Kat tried to meet Cathy’s eyes. But she clearly noticed that Cathy didn’t want to and disliked it, stopping herself. Cathy felt her appreciation and protection rise further. Hardly anyone had ever given up on eye contact. If it wasn’t finally forced and they did give up, it was usually followed by what Cathy had come to recognize as their show of irritation. The people in this room along with a handful of others were the only ones who never seemed annoyed or insistent.

Kat suddenly lurched forwards, out of Anna’s arms to pull Cathy into an embrace. The girl tensed at the sudden contact but relaxed. Cathy shifted slightly so her own clothing prevented Kat’s from touching Cathy’s skin (Kat’s clothing felt itchy and irritating to the touch and honestly Cathy didn’t know how Kat was wearing it, she supposed it just another weird trait of her own. Some clothing always felt that way to Cathy).

“Is this okay?” Cathy asked gently, arms wrapping around Kat’s waist. She felt a nod pressed into her shoulder and heard a shaky sigh.

“Thank you… thank you…” Kat murmured. A sob accompanied it. “I don’t… I don’t know what to do.”

“That’s fine… we’ll all be here with you.” Cathy hummed. “For now? Let’s just rest… here where it’s safe…”

“I’m sorry…” Cathy was about to tell Kat that there was no need to apologize, but Kat continued. “That your arrest happened… that you were hurt…”

Oh. That was not what Cathy expected.

Seeing that Cathy was too stunned to reply, Anna did. “Let’s heal together… all four of us. Mannox, Henry, and all the others who hurt us can go fuck themselves.” The red queen declared. “And Mannox? Mannox will get what’s coming to him.”

“I’m not letting you get hurt like that again. That’s a promise.” Anne’s eyes stayed stuck onto Kat. “And that goes for all of you.”

As Kat’s face was pressed into Cathy’s shoulder’s the thieves all glanced at each other, three out of four meeting eyes. They knew what they needed to do before this. But this scene just reaffirmed that decision.

“Why don’t we change the topic?” Anne offered carefully. “Or we can bake something! Do we have anything in the kitchen?”

So they did. Throughout the rest of the day, Kat perked up bit by bit, comforted by the group’s protection. But there was a constantly present look in her eyes.

A glaze of fear, anxiety, hopelessness, and doubt that caused everyone’s hearts to clench and their Personas to rage and fume deep in their hearts.

~~||~~||~~

It was time for Cathy to leave, and another question had popped up.

“So what do we do with Morgana?” Anne asked, glancing at the cat.

Kat winced. “Our family… they wouldn’t let us keep him.” She smiled sadly at Morgana, scratching behind his ears. “Shame too…”

“Some of my family is allergic.” Anna shook her head apologetically. “What about you, Bücherwurm?”

“Come on! You won’t let me stay outside like some kind of stray, will you?” Morgana pleaded.

Cathy didn’t even have to think about it. “We can try. It should work out. If I have to sneak you in then so be it.”

Morgana purred happily. “Perfect! In exchange I’ll teach you how to make thief tools! We’ll need those after all.” Cathy looked very interested by the deal but didn’t have time (and also couldn’t due to Kat) to ask more.

Kat laughed. “He’s rather chatty, isn’t he?”

“Yep, Morgana’s been like that since we found him.” Anne agreed with a small laugh. The furred thief scowled at her, clearly seeing it as her making fun of him.

“I should get going… I have some stops to make and I do want to make it home before Catalina gets worried.” Cathy told them.

“How are you gonna take the tube with Morgana?” Anna asked, arms crossed and a thoughtful look on her face.

For a moment, Cathy looked from her bag to the cat.

“Think he can fit?”

It took a few minutes to convince Morgana to get in the bag. Kat found the entire thing of Morgana looking as if he was arguing hilarious. But eventually, they got the cat into Cathy’s bag (at some point Anne got frustrated and almost shoved him in, but the others managed to stop her), although not without Morgana grumbling.

“I’ll see you all soon.” Cathy gave Kat a small glance, tilting her head. “I hope things get better, Kat.”

Kat took a deep breath, but sounded appreciative. “Thank you, Cathy…”

Cathy nodded and then left out the door, their goodbyes following behind her.

Morgana poked his head out of the bag. “Come on, we need to go check out that shop and then the clinic!”

So that’s what they did. They made their way towards the station, noticing the airsoft shop titled ‘Untouchable.’

“This must be the place.” Cathy murmured, Morgana quickly vanishing back into the bag.

The shop was small and rather dark. Weapons and equipment for airsoft filled the shelves, walls, and other displays. The man Cathy assumed to be the owner sat behind the cash register, a magazine in hand.

He was dressed in dark clothing, a black shirt with a long grey coat worn over it. A light grey cap was on his head, yellow ear defenders over that. He had grey hair with a faint stubble on his chin. A tattoo of a gecko was on his neck and the stick of a lollipop was sticking out of his mouth.

He glanced up at Cathy and surveyed her before letting out a small grunt and turning back to his magazine.

Cathy simply headed over to the shelves. It was all beginner and medium level items. The higher level models must have been hidden in the back. But Cathy figured that was very understandable.

She quickly picked out beginner level model weapons. Although, they did seem to be stronger than their original weapons they gained during their awakening. That accomplished, she made her way over to the cash register.

Cathy put the weapons down on the counter. The shop owner glanced at her with a raised eyebrow.

“You getting all of those for yourself?”

“Some are gifts for friends.” Cathy explained simply.

The man nodded before continuing, voice gruff. “Fair enough. Keep these hidden okay? They’re models but they look pretty damn real. So don’t go pointing them at people and keep them in their bags or even your own bag. Oh, and keep the fuzz out of it. I don’t need them coming around my shop. Got that?”

“Yes sir.” Cathy agreed. “Thank you for the warning. And personally, I’m not a big fan of the cops either.”

Well, after being arrested for something she didn’t even do, it wasn’t a lie. She didn’t hate the cops, but she was far more wary around them.

“Well how about that, I’m not either.” The man crossed his arms. “You can tell these are models if you look close enough, the stuff I'm giving you now is just beginner's items. Maybe someday I can show you the real good stuff… only if you have the guts for it though.”

Cathy perked up, a bit interested by the offer. “Perhaps one day, sir. Thank you for your time.”

The man nodded, pleased with the response. He took a seat again and went back to his magazine. Seeing that the conversation was over, Cathy left the shop. On her way out, she couldn’t help her intrigue about the man’s offer.

Maybe it would be useful…

~~||~~||~~

From there, Cathy took the subway back to her house. But she walked past. Instead, she headed to the small doctor’s office hidden away around the corner.

Honestly, Cathy had been needing to go somewhere like this anyways. She was running low on her medication for her autism. Her godparents hadn’t offered to help her and they were hardly there to ask anyways. So Cathy decided she would refill the prescription herself.

It just happened the thieves needed supplies as well.

The waiting area was small and void of patients. Behind the counter seemed to be the doctor. She had on the signature white coat. But she also seemed to have a punk attire. Her dark blue or black hair was short. A studded choker and necklace was around her neck, a short black dress with a red belt around her waist.

Her name tag read ‘Takemi.’

The small television in the corner was on the news. “The recent car crashes and attacks have increased and it has been discovered that they are linked. Just today, a man attacked a waiter in a restaurant and rampaged down the street before police could catch him. The public is now referring to these incidents as psychotic breakdowns. Apparently, the victim remembers nothing of what happened during the event. Police are still investigating.”

Takemi’s gaze flicked up as Cathy walked in, the bell chiming. “Can I help you?”

Cathy‘s gaze settled on the doctor. “Yes, I was hoping I could get checked out?” She quickly came up with a reason. “I’ve been getting headaches lately, and I’m in need of a refill on a medicine.” Half lie. She did require one of those two things.

Takemi hummed. “Alright then, let's head on back. I’ll check you out and you can tell me what you need refilled.”

They went back into the examination room. It didn’t take long at all, just questions and the basic check over.

Takemi glanced between her clipboard and Cathy. “Looks like it could just be stress. Hmmm, I’ll prescribe you some painkillers… ah, wait… I need to restock those.” She pondered for a moment before shrugging. “I’ll prescribe you some sleep medication instead. You do have signs of lack of sleep… and well, sleep is the best medicine I suppose.”

Damn, sleep pills wouldn’t help the team…

“I want the painkillers.” Cathy told Takemi.

Takemi’s brow raised as she observed Cathy for a moment. “Oh, and I suppose you should simply get them anytime you want?”

“Not at all.” Cathy replied. “I simply think the painkillers would help more than the sleeping pills.”

In her bag, Morgana remained silent but tense. Would Cathy pull it off?

“Well kid, you aren’t the doctor here. And you definitely look like you need more sleep anyways.” Takemi observed with a snort. “I’m guessing you're just here about the rumors? To see if they’re true?” At Cathy’s blank stare, Takemi elaborated. “My crappy exams, homemade medicines, ‘the Plague?’”

Well, Cathy wasn’t aware of that at all. “Actually… I meant what I said… I’ve had headaches and I need a new place that could help me refill my medication. Plus, I think the exam just went rather well.”

Takemi blinked, a little taken aback by the response. The teen was telling the truth?

“Alright… you seem like a good kid.” Takemi said after a moment, surveying Cathy closely. “I’ll prescribe you the painkillers.”

Cathy blinked, perking up. “Really?”

“Really.” Takemi huffed a laugh.

As Takemi began writing something down, Cathy glanced around the room. “So you’re the only one working here?”

“That’s right.” Takemi admitted easily. “This is my own clinic. All the medicines here are my own too. I have a license to make my own formulas. Several are even used in hospitals. So anyways, if you need anything else health-wise, my clinic will be right here.”

Cathy gave her a nod. “I’ll keep it in mind, promise.”

Takemi actually seemed a little pleased and possibly relieved by Cathy’s agreement. She couldn’t help herself form mumbling. “You’re a bit of a strange kid… wonder what you’ll use that medicine for.” She sat back up in her chair. “Well, as long as you don’t pull me into any trouble, I guess it isn’t really my problem. Now for your refill, I actually have some of that in stock. Rare cases, but I try to keep it on hand, just in case.”

Cathy blinked gratefully. “Thank you, Doctor.”

“Hey, it’s part of my job.” Takemi chuckled. “Head out front, I’ll get what you need.”

Cathy stepped out the door back to the lobby. Only to be met by a man in a suit. Before Cathy could move or say anything, the man simply pushed past her into the exam room.

Faintly, Cathy could hear the conversation.

“What’s the reason for your visit?” Takemi’s voice was cold, possibly even more frigid than when she asked about Cathy coming only for the rumors. “Whatever it is, you’ll have to take a number.”

“That’s enough!”

Cathy paused at the volume. She hadn’t meant to eavesdrop, but she could admit her curiosity was piqued.

“You’re the only one who could have developed that type of medicine!” The stranger snapped.

“I’m afraid I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Don’t you play dumb with me… the rumors say it’s a drug so potent, it can give you unlimited power.”

Cathy straightened a bit at that. Unlimited power? That sounded both dangerous and useful...

“Really? That’s some news to me.”

“Developing experimental drugs and medicines like you are doing violates all health regulations!” The man’s voice was accusing. “What, are you trying to make a super-stimulant?! That kind of drug will only cause problems!”

Takemi’s voice sounded tired, like she had done this too many times. “You’re a rather persistent person. I’m just a quack…”

The man scoffed. “The police may not act… but the media soon will. You’re just trying to ruin my reputation again, Takemi! You’re a disgrace to the medial community… don’t look at me like that! It was your mistake in the first place! Now dispose of that damn drug and resign!”

Then, the man came barging out. Cathy only had a split second to sit down and look like she was simply waiting.

The man’s head swiveled towards her. Takemi poked her head out the door. 

“I’ll get what you needed. Meet me at the counter.” Takemi told Cathy before vanishing again. She reemerged behind the desk, looking through her shelves.

The man’s eyes narrowed with suspicion. “And just what are you here for? Her drugs are dangerous, you know.”

Cathy stared back at his jaw, unfazed. “I don’t think that is your business, sir. And I’d rather see for myself before I trust rumors.”

The man gaped at her for a moment, flustered. Then, he clenched his jaw and walked out.

Cathy met Takemi at the counter, putting the medicine into her bag and making the payment.

Takemi observed her carefully. “You really are a strange kid…”

Cathy tilted her head. “I simply dislike rumors. I know personally the damage they can do.”

Takemi nodded her understanding and agreement, a chuckle escaping her lips. “Have a good day, kid.”

“You too, Doctor Takemi.” Cathy gave her a sure nod before heading home.

As they walked out, Morgana spoke up. “We should definitely try to figure out more about that drug!”

“Fully agreed.”

~~||~~||~~

“So this is where you live, huh?” Morgana asked. He stepped out of the bag as Cathy laid it on her bed.

“Mhmm. It’s my godfamily’s home.” Cathy explained.

Morgana hummed, gaze flicking around the room. “Well, this room is rather bland.”

Cathy shrugged, sitting on the bed next to him. “I only moved in a few days ago. And I’ll be leaving in a year anyways…”

Oh, that brought some less than fun thoughts. What about the thieves? What about the friends she had just made? It was a new experience that Cathy found herself appreciating and treasuring more and more.

The Palace exploration was a release. Something for her to channel her loud and overwhelming thoughts and emotions into. In fact, she really could use a release right now… her writing was always good for that as well, she’d have to do some writing tonight.

And friends… no one had ever really wanted to be her friend in her hometown. They all wanted out the second they learned what she was really like. How weird and quiet she is.

It was the same way in her past life too… Everyone just wanted to push themselves up in the world. And they were willing to use her reputation to do it.

A paw on her leg drew Cathy’s attention to Morgana. She had been rocking herself, lost in her thoughts and feelings.

“Do you really think they’ll let you stop being their friend that easily? And what about Phantom Thievery? You’re not getting out of it that easily! We’ve got a year, after all.” It seemed he knew exactly what she was thinking.

Cathy took a deep breath. Her fists unclenches. Drops of blood and marks remained where her nails dug into her palms. “Thank you, Morgana.”

“Of course! And besides, your room is better than that damned cage Mannox had locked me in!”

“Ah, that’s right… he didn’t hurt you, did he?”

Morgana huffed before explaining. “Nothing more than a kick into the cage! They mostly left me alone in there.”

“I’m sorry you had to go through that, Morgana.”

“It’s fine! And now I can make him pay for it, yes?” Morgana gained a confident grin.

“We’re making him pay for everything he has done.” Cathy assures with a nod. “Now, you mentioned something about infiltration tools?”

“That’s right!” Morgana had perked up. “So, in exchange for letting me stay with you, I’ll teach you how to make infiltration tools. Like, lockpicks, smoke bombs, the works.”

Cathy hummed with intrigue. “Then we have a deal, Morgana. It sounds useful.”

Morgana gave her a happy nod. “Great! And that power you used in the palace yesterday was absolutely awesome! The stronger you can make that power, the more reliable of a trump card we’ll have.”

Then, Morgana seemed to reach an agreement with himself. “I’ll stay by your side wherever you go from here on out. Personas are the strength born from one's heart. Depending on life experience, I’m sure that will help your power as well! And if you become acquainted with capable people, perhaps that will help you learn some valuable skills too… this is all part of our deal, you got that?”

Cathy felt her head jolt up at part of Morgana’s little speech. Morgana was talking about Confidants. He was talking about stuff she had learned from Igor in the Velvet Room… He was almost repeating exactly what they told her to do.

Perhaps it was a coincidence...

“And I’ll do my best to honor that deal.” Cathy managed to reply, agreeing with her thoughts of it being a coincidence.

“I’m expecting great things from you!” Morgana gave her a proud smirk.

Cathy didn’t give him a response other than a hum. They both sat there for several minutes. Morgana was observing the room. Cathy was organizing everything in her thoughts.

Then, a thought hit Cathy. She was quickly standing up and going over to the desk, opening the drawer. Morgana watched all of this in confusion.

Cathy dug through the drawer for a moment before pulling out one of her spare, unused notebooks. She grabbed her pen and made her way back over to Morgana.

“What’s that for?” Morgana asked as Cathy sat next to him again, a childlike curiosity was in his eyes.

“I’m going to start writing strategies and things I need to do for the Phantom Thieves and other activities here. I’m a bit afraid that I’ll forget if I don’t.” Cathy admitted.

She began sectioning off the notebook. There were parts for daily life, she labeled it ‘Confidants’ after the Velvet Room and Morgana’s words. There was a strategy section (including her friend’s capabilities and powers) and also a section on everything known about the Metaverse and even the Velvet Room. Cathy also made a section on Personas she was capable of using in the back. She paused for a moment before putting a spot in the back for reincarnation.

Morgana began helping her fill in all of the details. It was everything they already knew and had been told.

“I think it would be easier if I explain as we go through the Metaverse, yes? So you can fill it in as we go as well.” Morgana explained when Cathy asked for more information.

Cathy pondered his words. “That’s fair enough.”

They continued for several more long minutes. But it felt fulfilling to get everything down on paper where Cathy couldn’t possibly forget any of it. It also, more importantly, helped her organize her thoughts.

Finally, Cathy put the notebook away in her bag, keeping it safe and around for whenever she needed to include something. From there, her and Morgana chatted for several minutes.

“I thought I heard a cat.”

Cathy and Morgana both froze, turning to look at the door. Catalina stood there, arms crossed. Morgana immediately went on the defensive, staring back at Catalina almost challengingly.

“I want to keep him.” Cathy said, straight to the point.

“Keep me? Like some sort of pet?!” Cathy ignored Morgana’s yowl.

“Cathy, mother and father would never let you keep him.”

“Then why do they need to know?”

Catalina blinked in surprise. This was one of Cathy’s more vocal moments. And Catalina had for sure never seen the girl argue like this since she arrived a few days ago.

“Cathy, hermana… that’s not how this works.”

“Why can’t it work that way?” Cathy tilted her head. “They’re never here anyways. You told me so yourself.”

Catalina paused. Well… it was a fair enough point. One that stung a still open wound, but it was the truth.

Catalina observed the cat for a moment. Morgana stared right back silently.

“He has a collar…”

“I got it for him from a shop.” Cathy managed to lie smoothly. “He’s going to help me.”

Catalina took a deep breath. So Cathy was already attached. “And what will he do to help you?”

“Emotional support animal.” Cathy said quickly.

Catalina ran through her options. Perhaps a cat would bring Cathy comfort that she herself or Cathy’s friends couldn’t do. And the cat was rather cute…

Catalina shook her head. “Alright, I’m fine with it. But if mother and father find out, I never knew about this.”

Cathy and Morgana both perked up.

Catalina smiled and moved to sit next to them. “Now, tell me about our new little roommate. Does he have a name?”

“His name is Morgana.” Cathy said simply. She chuckled as Morgana purred when Catalina scratched his head. Ah, so he definitely still had the mannerisms of a cat.

“Hmm, wonderful name. We’ll probably have to get some supplies. And also a possible vet visit…” Morgana noticeably tensed. “But I suppose mother and father would be more likely to figure out if we did a vet visit. And he does look healthy.” Morgana relaxed again.

The conversation went on for a while longer. The three seemed comfortable together, Morgana’s suspicions fading. He made small comments to Cathy, leading to Catalina mentioning how talkative the cat was.

“He’ll have to be quiet when Mother and Father are home.”

“I’m sure he can manage.”

Eventually, after making sure Cathy ate something resembling a meal and drank something other than coffee (“Come to think of it… I never got hungry back in the Palace.” Morgana had made the observation), Catalina left back to her room. Cathy’s phone began buzzing after a moment.

BeetlejuiceReboot: sup u and mona get home safe?

NeedsSleep: Yes.  
NeedsSleep: Beetlejuice reboot?

BeetlejuiceReboot: hes a green ghost, imma green ghost!

HellHound: ya know hes a demon, yeah?

BeetlejuiceReboot: eh, still wrks  
BeetlejuiceReboot: i did good with ur names too  
BeetlejuiceReboot: plus, ive been lsitening to the soundtrack with Kat  
BeetlejuiceReboot: i vibe wth whole being dead thing

HellHound: great to hear that but back to Cathy and Mona?

NeedsSleep: We’re home safe. Catalina’s friendly with Mona.  
NeedsSleep: But she says it’s my responsibility if my godparents catch Mona.

HellHound: as if they’ll even catch that cat!  
HellHound: he’s a phantom thief

BeetlejuiceReboot: he dosn like being called cat

HellHound: shit right  
HellHound: ill remember

BeetlejuiceReboot: im workin on it too anna  
BeetlejuiceReboot: weell get it

NeedsSleep: We got the medicine and weapons too.  
NeedsSleep: Palace tomorrow?

BeetlejuiceReboot: should be good  
BeetlejuiceReboot: feel bad abt leaving Kat tho

HellHound: we’ll still spend time with her  
HellHound: some days palace  
HellHound: some days we’ll hang with Kat

NeedsSleep: She’s right.  
NeedsSleep: We’re leaving her out of the palace, not our lives. Especially not after everything she’s been through.

BeetlejuiceReboot: thnx for being there for ehr

HellHound: no need to thank me  
HellHound: no way in hell am I letting her be alone  
HellHound: shes been there for me since middle school  
HellHound: i couldn’t help her in our past life im gonna help her now

NeedsSleep: She doesn’t deserve what happened. She’s helped me and hasn’t labeled me.  
NeedsSleep: I want to be her friend and be there for her.

BeetlejuiceReboot: u rlly are a good person cathy  
BeetlejuiceReboot: never forget that  
BeetlejuiceReboot: nd that goes for anna too

NeedsSleep: ok

HellHound: i think you broek her  
HellHound: she lost her grammar

BeetlejuiceReboot: well im just saying the truth!

NeedsSleep: Thank you. I’ll see you both tomorrow?

HellHound: of course!

BeetlejuiceReboot: see ya cathy!  
BeeltejuiceReboot: hey anna  
BeetlejuiceReboot: how much do u bet I can chug an enitre pack of soda wtihout thrwing up

NeedsSleep: Please do not.

HellHound: holy shit  
HellHound: im calling Kat

BeetlejuiceReboot: 2 watch or stop

HellHound: can it not be both

Cathy chuckled as she made her way over to her desk, placing her phone off to the side and pulling out her writing notebook from her bag. She was glad her friends (it was just now hitting her that she had never been able to call someone that…) could find some fun in the current darkness, even if it could cause them to throw up.

Just like she has done millions of times before, Cathy began to write. Her fidget cube clicked in one hand and the pen scratched paper in the other. Morgana wandered around the room and simply watched her.

It lasted until around the range of ten-thirty to eleven at night.

“Don’t you think it’s time to go to bed?” Morgana asked. It had taken several calls to drag Cathy’s attention away from the notebook. “It’s getting late!”

“It’s not too late… I always do this.” Cathy blinked at Morgana. “I write for a few hours. I don’t have enough time during the day sometimes… and it’s more productive than sleeping, yes?”

Morgana gaped at her. “You’ve gotta be kidding—!” His face sealed with determination. “You’re getting in bed right now! I refuse to have our combat leader sleep deprived when doing her job!”

The cat leapt up to her shoulder and perched there. Cathy frowned, keeping her gaze on her notebook. “But I—.”

“No buts! We start exploring the palace to our full capabilities tomorrow!” Morgana insisted. “As long as I’m around, you’ll be getting a functioning sleep schedule!”

From there, no argument Cathy tried to make could dissuade the cat. Cathy felt annoyed the entire time, almost to the point of breaking down at the irritation surging through her body. But eventually, Morgana managed to herd her to bed.

And Cathy fell asleep within minutes.

Later, Catalina would poke her head back in the room. She was prepared to do exactly what Morgana did. She blinked in surprise upon seeing Cathy, fast asleep in bed. Morgana was curled up on Cathy’s chest. He raised his head and hissed at her, as if telling her to go away before she woke the sleeping teen.

Catalina raised an eyebrow. “If you got her to sleep then I think we’ll get along just fine.”

As she left the room, she swore the cat nodded. But perhaps she was just tired herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bücherwurm = Bookworm  
> Verrücktes Mädchen = crazy girl  
> Hermana = sister
> 
> ——————————
> 
> Did I listen to too much Beetlejuice yesterday? Yes, I did. And I regret absolutely none of it.
> 
> Also, Anne and Cathy being a supportive neurodivergent duo is wonderful and makes me happy. Cathy is definitely still the one who figures out that Anne has ADHD (she hasn’t been diagnosed yet), just like the series I wrote.
> 
> ——————————
> 
> Airsoft store owner:  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/b/ba/P5_Munehisa_Iwai.png/revision/latest?cb=20161220025304
> 
> Takemi Tae:  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/e/eb/P5_Tae_Takemi.png/revision/latest?cb=20161220150151


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cathy gains a confidant and the thieves make a start on infiltration.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: medication, passing out, execution, mentioned rape

Cathy woke up several times over the course of the night, but couldn’t get up. There was always a weight on her stomach holding her down (she could probably move it, but something in the back of her mind told her not to) until she finally fell back to sleep or simply laid there.

When she woke up that morning, the weight was still there. Through the light flickering through the curtains, Cathy could finally make out what it was.

Morgana.

The cat was curled up on her stomach, he seemed to be asleep. His ear twitched every so often and after a moment he brought his head up to look at Cathy.

“Good morning!” Morgana greeted with a yawn.

“Morning…” Cathy repeated, moving to sit up.

Morgana hopped off to sit at the foot of the bed. He watched as Cathy climbed to her feet and made her way over to her desk.

“So, what’s the plan for today? I know that we had plans to go into the palace.” Morgana asked as Cathy began to put items into her bag for the day.

Cathy frowned as she grabbed her notebook. She could have gotten so much writing done last night, and yet Morgana forced her to sleep… Cathy felt a bit of anger rise up in her chest. She took a deep breath and grabbed her fidget cube from the desk. She wasn’t going to lash out Morgana, no matter how much she wanted to.

“I think we should go ask Takemi about that drug before we meet up with the others.” Cathy told Morgana after a moment.

The cat nodded happily, beaming. “Great idea! We’ll have the time so we might as well!”

Cathy and Morgana headed down the stairs, Cathy continuing to click at the fidget cube. They were met by Catalina, putting food onto the plates.

“Buenos días! The both of you.” Catalina said, glancing down to the cat.

“Good morning, Catalina.” Cathy greeted back, making her way over to the coffee pot. Morgana hopped up onto one of the chairs.

“The cat isn’t allowed at the table.” Catalina said simply, not even turning around. Morgana had tried the same thing last night.

Morgana growled but hopped off the chair to the floor. He paced around their legs, both irritated and waiting for food.

“Do we have anything for Morgana?” Cathy asked, pouring the remaining coffee not in her mug into her large blue thermos for later.

“Well, I figured our new little friend would appreciate some fish.” Catalina said, already having grabbed the plate holding said meal.

Morgana perked up and his eyes glinted with joy. “All is forgiven!”

The second the plate was on the floor, the cat started digging in greedily. Catalina watched with a small laugh and Cathy was also amused by the sight.

“Now, come sit down, I made us some breakfast.” Catalina said, taking her seat.

Cathy sat down too, taking a sip from her coffee as she did. The breakfast was filled with both chatter and quiet. Catalina could practically sense when Cathy wanted quiet and definitely indulged that. She didn’t force Cathy into conversations either, asking small questions or simply letting Cathy start the conversation.

“Do you have any plans for the day?” Catalina asked as her and Cathy gathered up the plates and silverware.

“Mhm. I’m going to hang out with Anne and Anna.”

“Anna Cleves?” Catalina asked, eyebrow raised with amusement. “You’re forming quite the group.”

“Kat sometimes joins us, but she isn’t going to today.”

“Katherine Howard?” At Cathy’s nod, Catalina hummed. “The only other queen you haven’t befriended is Jane Seymour, then.”

Cathy perked up. If all of the other queens were reincarnated, then maybe this was a good chance to find out about her ‘sister-in-law.’ “She goes to our school too, right?”

“That’s right.” Catalina said, nodding her head. A frown was on her lips. “Poor Jane always seems so overworked. Between schoolwork and her… private life… I can’t say I’m very surprised.”

“Private life?” Cathy asked and she heard Morgana mumble the same question.

“It isn’t anything bad. It’s rather good in fact.” Catalina said. “I only know from rumors and the like. But I’m not going to tell you, it is her private life after all.” Catalina chuckled, glancing back to Cathy from where she was putting Morgana’s plate into the sink. “And if you keep befriending other queens, then maybe you’ll simply find out by yourself.”

Cathy tilted her head. She definitely wanted to ask more questions, but knew she wouldn’t get an answer. “Maybe I will… who knows.”

“Now, why don’t you go meet up with Boleyn and Anna. I’ll be here if you need me.”

“Will you be alright… by yourself?”

“I’ll be fine, Cathy. I have some work to finish anyways.” Catalina said simply.

Cathy watched Catalina for another moment. The older teen looked so tired… so lonely… But Cathy could tell Catalina wouldn’t move on this. And the group planned to go into the palace today meaning she couldn’t bring Catalina. So Cathy was forced to let it rest.

“Alright.” Cathy finally agreed. “But when we get the opportunity, we should spend time together. Watch a movie or something.”

Catalina perked up and a small smile appeared on her lips. “That sounds wonderful, Cathy.”

“Then it’s a plan.”

When Cathy walked back downstairs with Morgana in her bag, Catalina didn’t seem very surprised. (“Just don’t get caught…”)

~~||~~||~~

When Cathy walked into the clinic, Takemi looked up from behind the counter with interest. “Well, I didn’t expect to see you again for a while… something wrong? Your medicine, perhaps a cold?”

Well, no going back now.

“I heard you talking about that medicine.” Cathy said with complete seriousness.

Takemi noticeably straightened at that. Her eyes narrowed with suspicion. “Head into my office.”

Cathy paused for a moment before obeying and going through the door. She sat on the stool, placing her bag on the floor.

“Are we sure this is a good idea?” Morgana hissed.

“That medicine would help us greatly.” Cathy replied simply.

A few seconds later, Takemi entered the room. And then, she blocked off Cathy’s escape route by locking the door that led to the waiting room. Cathy straightened but didn't flinch at the sight. 

“Alright kid, answer me this.” Takemi began, keeping a close eye on Cathy as she leaned back against the locked door. “What conversation did you eavesdrop on to get that information?”

Cathy fixed her gaze on the door handle. “The one right after I left the room yesterday. With that man. He wasn’t exactly being quiet.”

Takemi snorted and shrugged her shoulders. “I’ll give you a point for that. He wasn’t exactly being discreet about his warnings, hmm? But honestly, I had a feeling you overheard…”

“That obvious?” Cathy asked simply, tilting her head slightly.

“You called that hiding?” Takemi gave her a smirk. Cathy winced a little bit, but easily hid it. She would have to do better if she wanted to pull off their heist with Mannox. It wouldn’t be good if they were found out in reality.

“I was going to dispose of that medicine anyways… I got a little too carried away…” Takemi admitted with a sigh. Her gaze then became cold again, but there was a lace of curiosity. “Here’s an interesting question… Why would a high schooler be so interested in that medication?”

Cathy didn’t even hesitate for her answer. “I want it to help with my exams.”

Takemi actually seemed to relax a bit at that. “For exams, huh? You want to improve concentration and reduce fatigue?” Takemi let out another small chuckle. “Sorry kid, but it isn’t the best idea… I already mentioned how you look like you could use more sleep.”

What is it with people and her sleeping habits? Cathy believed that she was doing perfectly fine. Her grip on her shirt sleeve tightened a bit.

“But if that’s what you want to do…”

Cathy blinked in surprise, glancing up to Takemi. But then, the doctor unlocked the door and stepped to the side.

“Good luck with that. Have a nice day.” Takemi said simply.

Cathy felt frustration at herself well up. She clenched her arm a little tighter.

That medicine would have helped the team. It would have helped them stop Mannox. But Cathy couldn’t find a good enough reason and blew it.

Dammit! Fucking Dammit!

“I have zero obligation to help you with your studies. Can’t you just grab an energy drink on your way home?” Takemi continued, pulling Cathy slightly out of her spiral.

“Doctor… that medicine would help me a lot…” Cathy tried.

“You’re annoying, you know that?” Takemi raised a brow. Cathy felt her body physically flinch at that statement. “That medicine costs almost as much as a car does. Do you think a high school can buy it that easily? Now, unless you need your ASD medication or have a serious medical emergency, I would suggest leaving my clinic until either of those needs arises.”

But then, Cathy suddenly had an idea. “What if I worked for you?”

Takemi paused, glancing at Cathy. For a moment it was quiet. Then the doctor spoke, mumbling to herself. “I have been looking for someone her age to help… the ad didn’t work… and even with how tired she looks, maybe she could still be useful…”

Then, Takemi raised her voice fully, looking back to Cathy. “I suppose we could make a deal… would you be willing to work for me?”

Cathy perked up. It worked! “Absolutely.”

“Alright, then you’ll be participating in clinical trials for my medicine.”

And suddenly, Cathy wanted to backtrack. But she already agreed… and her friends needed the medicine for the palace…

While Cathy had been thinking, Takemi had vanished to the back for a moment. Then, she reappeared with a colored liquid in a plastic cup. “Here you go. Worried about what can happen, huh? Well, an autopsy would easily tell me what killed you.”

Cathy stared wide eyed at Takemi for a moment. The doctor smirked back at her. “The exit’s right there if you want out.”

Cathy took the cup with ease after her moment of shock passed. “I already agreed, didn’t I?” And then, before Takemi could reply, Cathy downed the medicine.

Takemi gaped for a moment. “You actually…?”

Cathy huffed at the taste. It was rather bitter, but Cathy had honestly tasted worse medication. It pricked at her tongue and for a moment, Cathy thought she would overload, but somehow she didn’t.

“You’re still doing okay as well…” Takemi nodded, a little impressed. “Not bad for a sleep deprived teenager, I suppose.”

And as if Takemi jinxed the universe, Cathy suddenly felt a spell of dizziness. Her vision spun and the cup dropped from her hand. She felt her body slump forward, quickly caught by the arms by a pair of hands.

When Cathy woke up again, she was on the examination bed that had been against the wall of the room. Takemi had spun in her chair upon hearing Cathy stir and the doctor was now watching her carefully.

Cathy carefully sat on the edge of the bed. At least now she didn’t feel like passing out again.

“Good afternoon!” Takemi greeted, writing something on her clipboard.

“How long have I been out?” Cathy asked, still blinking the last bit of both dizziness and sleepiness out of her gaze.

“Not too long, maybe half an hour. It’s about twelve now.” After answering Cathy, Takemi launches into her own questions. “Now, do you remember anything from when you took the medicine until now?”

Cathy pondered for a moment before shaking her head.

Takemi nodded, as if expecting it. “You did wake up, but you were dazed.” Takemi then took on a scolding look. “Are you out of your mind, kid? Only an idiot would drink something like that from a stranger!”

Cathy shrunk slightly. The tone and the word ‘idiot’ felt too damn familiar. “I already told you, it’s for my exams.”

Takemi watched her for a moment before simply nodding and moving on. “Alright then, I’ll honor my side of the deal. Oh and by the way, what happens here is to remain here. You’re prohibited from disclosing it.”

Cathy nodded. Sounded illegal, but understandable. She wasn’t going to question the gift horse she had just been delivered.

“Good! I have some paperwork for you. Help me test my medicines and I’ll continue to sell you what you need for a good price.” Then, Takemi pulled another clipboard out with some papers.

“So, what’s the name of my new little guinea pig?”

“Catherine Parr.”

~~||~~||~~

After leaving the clinic, Cathy made her way straight to the school. She needed to meet up with the other queens so their infiltration could begin. The medicine’s effects had long since faded and Cathy felt ready, with some of the newly acquired medicine in her bag. Apparently, Morgana had practically freaked out (“I did not freak out! I wasn’t worried at all!” He insisted) when Cathy passed out, but luckily, he didn’t leave the bag.

Cathy perked up upon noticing Anna already there, the red teen giving her a wave.

“Schönen Tag, Cathy!” Anna greeted.

“Good afternoon, Anna.” Cathy greeted back. She spared the girl a small glance from where she had been looking at her fidget cube.

Morgana’s head popped out of Cathy’s bag behind her shoulder and he brought his front paws to rest on Cathy’s shoulder, effectively creating a perch as he looked to Anna. “Anna, are you ready for the palace?”

“For sure, Kleiner Dieb!” Anna responded eagerly.

At the curious tilt of Morgana’s head, Anna laughed. “It means little thief.”

Morgana actually puffed up pridefully upon hearing that. But before he could respond, running drew their attention. Anne was rushing towards them.

She stopped in front of them, trying to catch her breath. “Pardon! Pardon! Suis-je en retard?”

Anna was gently taking the girl by her shoulders and guiding her to sit on the bench. “Woah, just breathe, Anne.”

“Are you alright?” Cathy asked quickly, making her way over to her friend’s sides. Morgana also looked concerned as he hopped from Cathy’s shoulders to the bench next to Anne.

“Fine, fine.” Anne responded after a deep breath. “Am I late?”

“Right on time, Verrücktes Mädchen.” Anna answered easily, still keeping one hand on the girl’s shoulder.

“Good.” Anne nodded happily to herself. “I lost pretty much everything I needed to bring! I had to search, that took me awhile and it was already almost time to leave! So I thought I would be late!”

“Hey, you made it on time!” Morgana comforted.

Cathy also jumped in. “And we’ll never be mad if you’re late either.” Anna and Morgana both nodded with that statement.

“Thanks guys.” Anne said simply. She absolutely meant it, and more. “So, Palace time? I want to make Mannox regret that he ever touched Chaton.”

“Agreed.” Anna growled, popping her knuckles.

“Of course! Cathy?” Morgana looked to the blue queen.

“Here’s everyone’s new weapons. Anna and I will have to put ours together.” Cathy said, placing her bag on the ground and beginning to pull out all of their weapon and weapon parts.

It didn’t take too long to put the weapons together. After that, it was simply handing out supplies and getting ready.

Morgana looked around a little anxiously as they did everything. “We really need to find a better meeting point.”

“Merde! We could have been doing this in the Palace!” Anne realized. Anna and Cathy blinked before the former groaned.

“We’ll just have to remember for next time.” Cathy told them before turning to Anna. “You should have the Navigator on your phone now. Would you like to test it out?”

Anna perked up as she pulled out her phone. “I noticed it last night! So it’s a navigation app?”

“Yep! It’s what allows us to go to the Metaverse, that other world.” Anne answered, fiddling with her model dagger.

Anna easily opened it as the group gathered around. From there, they simply entered the codewords before the world shifted and changed.

Just like that, they were in their thief outfits staring at red sky and a music hall.

“Alright! Let’s steal his treasure and knock him down a peg!” Ghost smirked, stretching.

“So we’re stealing his treasure then…” Anna muttered, looking the music hall over.

“Yes, we manage that and he’ll confess to everything.” Survivor nodded. “But… there is a chance of his death. Are you sure you want in?”

Anna’s eyes narrowed and the grip on her axe’s handle tightened. “I’m willing to take that chance. He’s hurt people and we need to stop him. I’m doing this for Kätzchen… and nothing you say will get me to back out now.”

Ghost smirked, making her way to stand by Anna. “Beau discours! We’re going to make that bastard pay…”

Ghost and Anna sent each other determined and malicious grins before looking back to Mona and Survivor.

“Now then, what should Anna’s codename be…?” Mona mumbled. One paw went to his chin as he looked to Anna.

“Ah, that’s right. We need to give you a codename.” Survivor realized, looking Anna’s outfit over.

“Oh, you were all calling each other by nicknames before, right?” Anna remembered, crossing her arms.

“Codenames!” Mona insisted. He cleared his throat, regaining composure. “I’m Mona. Those two are Survivor and Ghost.”

Anna chuckled, glancing at the duo. “Ironic names, you two.”

“Yeah? They sound great though!” Ghost chirped. “Now, for your codename…”

It was actually Anna who spoke. “I like the sound of Bogenschütze, after Artemis.”

The other three stared blankly for a moment.

Mona cleared his throat. “Yes, well… it’s a bit long, and we need something to easily call out in battle…”

Anna looked a little sheepish. “I guess that’s right, sorry. And I’m not even an archer anyways…”

“Hunter?” Ghost offered eagerly.

“Ich mag das… but I think we could do better…” Anna said carefully. She was also thinking about it.

“What about Hound?”

Everyone glanced to Survivor. She continued. “Like a hunting dog. You’re hunting down evil. You’re also very protective of us, like a guard dog I suppose you could say.”

“You really do come up with good nicknames!” Ghost nodded, looking happy with Anna’s possible codename.

“I like it!” Mona agreed before looking to Anna. “Well? Does that sound good to you?”

Anna regarded Survivor for a moment before her face split with a wide grin.

“Queens and thieves, you can call me Hound!”

~~||~~||~~

From there, they made their way up fully to the Palace, only for Survivor to freeze.

For off to the right stood a familiar figure. It was one of the twins, Justine. She stood in front of a glowing blue door.

Upon noticing the stare, Justine simply stared right back. “My master would like to speak with you.” She explained in her familiar calm voice.

Survivor gave a glance to the others, who had begun talking a little bit away. Carefully, she made her way over, nodded to Justine, and entered the room.

Familiar blue color, cells, and prison uniform. Cathy was back in the Velvet Room.

Caroline was now present as well. “The prisoner Catherine Parr has arrived!”

Igor sat at his familiar table, looking very pleased with Cathy. “Well done! It seems you remembered my words. It truly is worth rehabilitating you.”

Cathy stared at Igor. “You know… I never asked for this.”

“No, you did not. But fate decreed it.” Igor chuckled. “The essence of your rehabilitation will be explained in time. Once you encounter friends sharing your aesthetic and when you discover your place in reality. Only then, shall all be explained. That day should not be far off.”

Cathy slowly nodded. Yes, Igor was still keeping that information hidden. But at least he told her that eventually it will be explained.

Igor called back her attention. “Now, I summoned you as I wished to introduce you to our aid. Due to your potential of wielding the power of the wild card, you can summon more than one persona.”

Cathy perked up. There’s a name for it! “Wild card…”

“Such a power has infinite possibilities. As such, we will assist in nurturing that power. For this, we must execute your Personas.”

Cathy froze. Execute?

Igor noticed the panicked look. “Now, do not be alarmed. Personas are personalities within you. As such, old personalities will be discarded for rebirth as now ones.”

A guillotine appeared with the snap of Igor’s fingers. “Now then, who would you like to fuse?”

Cathy refused to lose Athena to this. She hesitated as she spoke. “Pixie and Bicorn.”

Igor nodded his head. And then, in a flash, Bicorn and Pixie appeared. Both gave Cathy their farewells, and then their heads were swiftly covered as they were placed in the guillotines.

Was this what Anne and Kat’s executions looked like? No… they weren’t beheaded by guillotine. But still, that sight made Cathy stumble, grabbing onto the bars for support.

Then, the two persona’s energy reformed to make one persona. A green creature that introduced itself as Slime.

Igor nodded his head as he spoke again. “A stronger persona has been born from the body and blood of the old. This is your new strength.”

“This power’s worth will be made clearer when you return to battle.” Justine directed Cathy.

Igor’s grin almost seemed to become wider. “Gather a great many Personas, execute them, and continue to give birth to even stronger Personas. Developing these powers as such will play an integral role in your stand against ruin.”

“We have a variety of execution rituals to choose so that your rehabilitation goes well.” Justine spoke again.

“And depending on your effort, perhaps our master will create even more rituals!” Caroline snapped. “Cry tears of joy, Inmate!”

Cathy watched the three of them. These executions didn’t seem to hurt the Personas… as long as they weren’t hurt, Cathy could agree to the terms. “Thank you, all of you.”

The twins actually seemed a little surprised that they were being thanked as well. But Igor was the one who spoke. “Your heart is gaining the strength of rebellion. A sure sign that rehabilitation is proceeding smoothly. In regards to this, I have prepared a gift. I do hope you accept it.”

For a moment Cathy’s head ached, but it passed quickly.

“It is called the Third Eye. It is a thief’s skill, allowing one to tap into their sixth sense and see what is hidden in the dark.” With one last chuckle, Igor finished their conversation. “I believe you can handle it. Continue devoting yourself to further rehabilitation.”

“Now then, if you have requests, we will heed them.” Justine told Cathy.

“If not, then you can head on back!” Caroline practically ordered.

Cathy didn’t have further requests.

Upon exiting the room, Survivor first noticed the other three thieves. They had gathered around her and looked worried.

“Are you alright, Survivor?” Mona asked her.

“Yes…” Survivor responded, a little confused. Had she not been in the Velvet Room?

“You were just standing there, Bücherwurm…” Hound explained carefully.

“It was for a few seconds but it looked like you were completely somewhere else.” Ghost also explained concern in her gaze.

Survivor paused for a moment, perhaps it was finally time to explain the Velvet Room.

“I think… there’s something we should talk about.” Survivor said carefully.

It took several minutes to explain. Survivor tried to explain as much as she could to the others.

“This Igor is the one who gave you all the app…?” Mona muttered, deep in thought.

“And that Velvet Room helps you with your multiple Personas?” Hound asked, intrigued.

Survivor tilted her head. “Yes, I suppose it could be seen that way.”

Mona frowned, tail moving as he thought. “Are you sure we can trust this Velvet Room? I mean, they gave you all access to this world and are capable of fusing Personas! That’s not normal!”

“But they’re good, helpful things, yeah?” Ghost pointed out.

“They haven’t done anything to hurt me yet. They seem strange but they’ve been helpful.” Survivor told the entire group.

“I vote!” Ghost said, drawing everyone’s gazes to her. “That we don’t look this gift horse in the mouth!”

“She’s right. Besides… I doubt I could get out of it if I wanted to.” Survivor said. She glanced back at the Velvet door and noticed the twins, both present now, still standing guard outside the Velvet Room. Both stared right back at her. Survivor grimaced and looked back to others, a little uncomfortable by the constant stare.

Mona watched the group for a moment. “Alright, fine. Why don’t we stop talking and head in before shadows find us?”

“Let’s steal his desires!”

~~||~~||~~

From there, they began infiltration again. Looking over a map they had found, the group realized they had overlooked a library back in the residential area. So that was their goal for the day.

So they went down the hallways. Taking out about a few shadows as they went.

Eventually, they came across something unfamiliar. It was a large door hiding where the hall once was. In front of the door was a guard.

“That wasn’t here before…” Survivor whispered to herself.

“It looks like Mannox is closing off his heart more… perhaps it’s because all of you found out.” Mona nodded to himself, seemingly pleased by the theory.

“Do we need a key for the door?” Ghost asked as her gaze flickered to the guard and around the hallway.

“That guard should have it, we just need to take him out!” Mona explained.

“Let’s do it!” Hound whisper shouted.

That was the only motivation Survivor needed to race around the corner and up to the shadow. It was caught off guard and that split second allowed Survivor to vault up it’s shoulders and rip the mask away from its face.

Revealed was the jack-o-lantern shadow. It’s red eyes stared back at them with anger. The flame in it’s lantern seemed to glow brighter.

“You won't get past me!” The Jack-o-lantern cried.

Survivor immediately tried to hit the shadow with her bo-staff while she was close to it, but the jack-o-lantern simply laughed as it dodged her attack. And then, it returned one of its own.

The burst of fire raced past the thieves and they all quickly leapt to the side. The flames hit Ghost, but Mona was quickly casting dia to heal her.

“Hound, try your magic!” Survivor was calling out.

Hound nodded and was quickly casting bufu mere seconds after Survivor gave the order. The jack-o-lantern was sent to the ground with a shriek. Then, the four thieves all gathered around, guns raised.

Upon seeing the guns, the shadow yelped. “Hey, Wait! It’s not a good idea to shoot those things this recklessly, ho!”

“Ho?” Survivor mumbled to herself before turning her attention back to the shadow. “I want you to lend me your power.”

The shadow looked intrigued, but a little wary. “Be-hee-fore that! Let’s enjoy a chat, ho!”

Survivor nodded. They had all wanted to talk beforehand, supposedly to see if they could connect with her. But that was simply a theory. “I don’t see why not.”

The shadow perked up, the flame in the lantern becoming brighter. “Hee-ho, hee-ho! You’re a nice thief lady, ho!” Then, the shadow seemed to ponder something. “What do you want from me, ho? He-ohh! I know!” The shadow looked very eager. “You came from some other company to scout me-hee out! I completely get it now!”

Survivor nodded. Just like before, she needed to please the shadows. “You’re right. That’s exactly why I’m here.”

“Ho, I knew it! You must be a fan, ho! Hey wait a sec…” Memories seemed to hit the jack-o-lantern. “I remember… I’m not a shadow here, ho… I live in the sea of the hee-human heart! I’m Pyro Jack, ho! And I am you, and you’re me!”

With that, Pyro Jack burst into a brilliant blue before merging with Survivor mask.

“So that’s what it looks like…” Hound said with interest. “They just go into your mask?”

“Pretty cool though, right?!” Ghost said before the others could speak.

“And now, Survivor can summon that Pyro Jack as a Persona!” Mona also explained, eyes glimmering with pride.

“Do you feel them like you do your original persona?” Hound asked with interest. Every single persona user could feel their persona resting on or showing emotions in their heart.

“I do.” Survivor tilted her head. “It’s rather loud… but they try to quiet down a bit when they start to overwhelm me. Athena keeps them under control.”

It was true. Whenever multiple Personas would push her more towards an overload with the sheer emotions they sent her way, Athena would be the one to quiet them down. It had actually started to happen for a moment both on her way to meet the others and also when they saw the shrine.

Survivor was very grateful to her other self, her first persona who was ingrained into her very soul.

“Let’s keep moving everyone.” Ghost directed after a moment. Ghost was the one who stepped up to the door and swung it open.

Where there was once a hallway, not hidden by a door, there was now a large, round room. In the middle were different squares labeled with the types of instruments. Percussion, string, etc. A large door was across the room, locked tight.

Survivor blinked, tilting her head. “Well, this is new.”

“You didn’t think a palace ruler would leave their heart open, did you?” Mona asked, looking over the puzzle.

“So they have ways of blocking off their hearts.” Survivor noted.

“And we just solve it to get through, right?” Hound asked. “This one looks like we just find the instruments and organize them.”

“Then let’s do it!” Ghost chirped as the group backtracked.

As they went, Survivor began testing out her third eye. It was very interesting. She could see treasures, footprints left by guards, and more that was once invisible to her. The footprints were what led them to the instruments.

They soon found two of the instruments in a room. But they were protected by a shadow. Survivor didn't even hesitate as she leapt forward and ripped the mask off. The guard split and became a Pixie and a Bicorn.

The Pixie was quickly gunned down by Survivor and Hound, destroying it. Mona was leaping over the Bicorn, distracting it as a blast of shadows from Ghost sent the beast to the floor, allowing the group to surround it.

After several long moments of talking, the Bicorn faded into her mask with a blue flash.

Interesting… so she could recruit another shadow of the same type if she needed to…

Survivor would have to keep that in mind. But it was pushed to the back as she helped the group gather up the two instruments the shadows had been guarding.

After that, they soon found the remaining two instruments they needed. The organizing was easy compared to the searching and fighting.

“Alright, Queens!”

“That was actually pretty fun!”

“A music teacher with music themed puzzles… I’m not very surprised.”

“Nice job you three! Gah— Wait, we need to be quiet!”

On their way to the library, they ran into a few more shadows. The battles were rather easy, the thieves getting into a steady rhythm. Survivor even managed to recruit two more Personas. One was the small red demon they had seen before by the name of Incubus (Cathy made a silent agreement with herself to fuse him as soon as possible), along with a small plant-like shadow by the name of Mandrake.

But eventually, they reached the book filled room.

Survivor actually looked very eager to read some of the books. So she grabbed on off the shelf. She flicked through the pages only to immediately put it back.

“What’s up, Bücherwurm?” Hound asked, noticing what happened.

Survivor stared at the book she put back. “They’re all on our classmates… Information. Bad information.”

Three pairs of eyes flashed with understanding.

“Well come help us over here, we found another puzzle.” Mona told Survivor.

Sure enough, there were a bunch of music sheets strewn out on the table and three different slots in a blank wall. Each slot had a different instrument’s picture over it.

“So these sheets go in the slots, yes? They’re out in the open like this and I can’t see any students being paired with instruments…” Survivor asked, mostly to herself. “Then we just need to figure out which ones go in…”

“Or maybe sort them?” Ghost suggested.

“But in what way?” Mona asked, arms crossed in concentration.

“Well, the slots have pictures of instruments…” Hound pointed out.

“So we definitely sort them by instrument somehow…”

This continued for a while, the group trying to figure out what to do with the sheets. Eventually, three of the four thieves backed away from it.

“I don’t know much about music sheets…” Survivor admitted, her hand grasping at her arm in frustration.

“I’ve never had to deal with music sheets before.” Mona also spoke up. His voice trailed into a mumble. “I don’t think I ever knew I would need that kind of knowledge…”

“Same here… Kat’s the musician, not me.” Hound leaned against her axe with a frown on her face.

While the group talked, Ghost was looking over the sheets. She looked them over several times before mumbling to herself as she began to move them around again.

Mona sighed. “We’ll probably have to skip this one. It was a good try.”

“And I thought you out of all of us would want to solve it.” Hound spoke up, looking to the small thief.

“I do!” Mona puffed up slightly. “But we can’t figure out how to solve it just yet! Maybe we need something outside of this room instead of the sheets!”

Survivor hummed. “We never did confirm that… we can try to come back another time.” Survivor then looked to the library door. “We should probably go. A shadow might arrive any minute.”

The other two nodded.

Just then, there was a loud scraping noise. The three thieves spun around to see the music sheets organized into the three different slots. A secret door in the wall had slid down to reveal stairs. Ghost stood next to that opening, looking very proud of herself as she looked to the others.

The three stared back at the friend in surprise.

“Wh— Verrücktes Mädchen? How did you?”

“Ghost solved it?!”

Ghost seemed the shrink in on herself a little. She glared at the others defensively. “What, did you guys think I was some idiot?”

Oh.

“We didn’t think that at all.” Hound said with certainty.

“It’s just…” Mona still looked a little in shock. “None of us could figure the order out… so how?”

Ghost blinked, defenses fading away. She actually seemed a bit taken aback. She opened her mouth to speak, but it seemed no words would come out.

“Ghost, you’re far from an idiot. The farthest from it in fact.” Survivor told the girl immediately. “We know you are far smarter than it seems people give you credit for. You may just be the smartest person here.

Survivor knew that Ghost’s defensive nature came from past experiences, maybe from the rumors, maybe from something else. Survivor also knew for a fact that Ghost was very intelligent. Even if Ghost said that she had bad grades.

Ghost flushed bright red at the praise. “The answer was to organize them by how the song went… Y’know… one formed a song, another formed a song, on and on. But you put them in the slots based on the instrument you played it with. Like this one so played with the lute, a much older instrument, and this one is played with the drums. You just matched with that. I got really interested in music at one point..”

Survivor chuckled. Hearing it, the answer seemed fairly simple now. Survivor supposed they had been overthinking it.

“You did wonderfully, Ghost.” Survivor praised, stepping over to stand next to Ghost at the steps. “You’re one of the smartest people we know. Keep that in mind, yes? Now, let’s see what Mannox was keeping hidden away.”

All of them followed Survivor down, giving Ghost encouraging smiles as they went. Ghost had a little more energy to her step that perked the others up with happiness as well.

Once down the steps all of them froze. That happy energy faded in seconds.

In front of them was a shrine. A shrine dedicated to one Katherine Howard.

Pictures were strewn about the walls. All surrounding one large portrait of a smiling Kat. Some of the pictures were even nude. Bookshelves with a few books, all titled after the teen (and even her past life self) were around the room. A small table sat in the corner with a new map and another stack of books.

That energy Ghost had faded away. Survivor stared almost blankly. Hound’s face twisted into a scowl. Mona stared for a moment before sighing and shaking his head sadly.

“I should have known we would see something like this…” Mona whispered.

For a long moment, everyone stared quietly.

“Head back to the safe room.” Survivor finally directed, grabbing the map off the nearby table. She refused to look at this any longer.

Mona and Hound left the room, just as eager to get out. Rage was still in their eyes and posture as they made their way back up the stairs.

Survivor glanced over to Ghost, who stood still in the middle of the room.

Ghost was trembling with fury, fists clenched white and gaze locked onto the giant picture.

Survivor carefully stepped over to her. She placed a hand on Ghost’s shoulder. The green thief jumped, head swiveling to stare at Survivor. Her eyes were wide and her lips drawn into a snarl.

“We’re going to make him pay… I promise you.”

Ghost took a deep breath and then shakily nodded. She looked ready to cry from rage and frustration.

She trailed behind Survivor. The green thief gave one last glance to the shrine.

She nodded resolutely to herself before picking up her pace and lifting her head, fueled by her determination and the cold fury that flowed through her veins.

They made their way back to the closest safe room. Everyone grabbed a chair, Survivor and Hound, or perched on the table, Ghost had sat with Mona on the edge of the table.

For a moment, everyone was quiet, trapped in their thoughts.

“An entire secret place for her...” Hound snorted. “I guess he’s trying to keep the rape a secret, huh?”

“This is all Mannox’s subconsciousness showing that he’s trying to keep what he’s doing secret.” Ghost growled, she fiddled with her dagger. “His classrooms are hidden below the music hall itself and guarded. That damned shrine was hidden by a puzzle and secret door! C'est un lâche…”

“We’ll be exposing those secrets soon enough.” Survivor told all of them. “By our deadline, his treasure will have been stolen… and then he can never hurt them again.”

Mona nodded, a frown was on his face though. “She’s right. Steal his treasure and he’ll confess.”

The thieves all nodded as one. They were going to protect the students, Kat especially. And to do that, his treasure would be theirs.

“So Mona.” Survivor spoke up, wanting to divert the topic. The smallest thief gave her his attention. “I was hoping you could explain the magic a bit more. We all have certain elemental attacks…”

“Ah that’s right. I never did explain the skills...” Mona hummed. “Let’s see… Survivor can use different skills, but her main persona can use nuclear magic. Hound uses ice magic, and Ghost uses curse magic.”

Ghost’s eyes narrowed. “Curse magic? That’s clearly shadow magic!”

Mona sighed. “Yes, it is! But it’s called curse magic!”

Ghost stared for another second before nodding. “Fine I guess…”

“Nuclear magic, hmm?” Survivor looked intrigued.

“Correct! Your magic uses nuclear energy and radiation to create explosions and the like.” Mona explained with arms crossed. “There are other elemental skills as well. Such as electricity and fire. Some Personas can even learn physical and gun skills…”

“Damn, and Survivor can use all of them if she gets the right Personas.” Hound realized with wide eyes.

Mona grinned widely. “And that’s why she’s our trump card!”

“I have a limit on the amount of Personas I can carry, but the Velvet room is helping me by fusing and exchanging Personas.”

“Can we even trust that place?” Mona asked, tail swishing. He still wasn’t quite sure…

“I’ve been there several times, completely trapped and they haven’t killed me yet.” Survivor tilted her head, thinking. “They’ve been helpful. I want to trust them for now.”

Hound shrugged. “Your call. You’re the only one who can go there.”

“And hey, didn’t you say that there isn’t exactly a way for you to get out of it?” Ghost asked, glancing to Survivor.

“That’s right.” Survivor affirmed.

“Well, they certainly are helping with your power. So they’re at the very least useful.” Mona said, a thoughtful look on his face.

Everyone was quiet for a moment.

“Why don’t we back out for today?” Survivor finally asked, standing from her chair. “We made good progress.”

The thieves nodded with determined looks before they all exited the safe room, sneaking back to their familiar open window.

It was a good day of infiltration. They had until early May, around a month. And they were going to make it or die trying.

They had too much to lose.

~~||~~||~~

“What caused you to get home so late?”

Anne felt irritation rise up in her chest. Of course, the second she got to the house, she was interrogated. Her step-grandmother and father were both home and sitting at the table. Both watched her with calculating and annoyed gazes.

“I was out with friends.” Anne answered simply. They were always annoyed with her…

“Which friends?” Her step-grandmother scoffed, almost with disbelief.

Anne’s fists were clenched white, her nails digging into her palms. “New ones. At least I came home.”

Both ignored the second part as her father spoke. “I hope your friends aren’t delinquents.”

No one, family or not, was going to insult Anne’s fellow queens and thieves.

“They aren’t delinquents! They’re good and too nice for their own good! Just because I came home late doesn’t mean I was with bad people!” Anne snapped, eyes narrowed to slits.

“Your grades have been dropping too, perhaps those ‘friends’ are the cause!” Her Step-Grandmother alerted. Her father’s eyes narrowed at that news.

“For Christ’s sake Anne, we’ve talked about your damn grades! Can’t you just do your work?!”

That was the final straw for Anne.

“Fuck you! Every time I do something wrong you’re on my case! I’ve tried to do my work! I’ve tried to keep my grades up! And yet you still treat me like an idiot when I’ve tried to tell you to fucking problem!”

And then, without waiting for a response, Anne stormed up the stairs. Ignoring the shouts of her name behind her, Anne went directly for Kat’s room. Sure enough, the pink teen was sitting on her bed, finishing up some school work.

Kat blinked and turned to look at Anne. “Annie?”

Anne reached the bed with a quick stride and held out her arms, waiting approval. Kat held her own out in return and Anne quickly leaned forward to capture Kat in a hug.

“I heard Uncle and Grammy yelling at you…” Kat murmured. Anne growled at the reminder.

“I’m sick of them.” Anne hissed, grip tightening slightly, but Kat didn’t mind. “I swear to god the second I can get out of here…”

“The plan is still the same?” Kat asked with a small laugh.

“Hell yeah. Graduate, get a stable job, and get the both of us out of here.” Anne listed with a hopeful hum.

“I can’t wait.” Kat agreed, her own gaze wistful.

“Can I sleep in here for tonight?” Anne asked cautiously.

“Of course you can…” Kat smiled. “Do you have any homework to finish?”

“Shit, I do…” Anne groaned against Kat’s shoulder.

Kat let out a giggle at her cousin. “Go grab it. I’ll help you finish it. You know you need to keep your grades up if you want to follow that little dream of ours.”

“I’m wanting to be a theatre major anyways. And you know how boring it is, I can’t focus on it!” Anne’s hand came up to her choker. Kat quickly took hold of it.

“I know it probably sucks really bad. And I don’t know what it feels like. But I’m here to help you with it, okay?” Kat told her with a gentle smile. “And ignore them, I know how smart you are.”

Anne calmed down and hummed happily. “You know I’m supposed to be the one tutoring you, right? I’m a grade ahead after all.”

Kat laughed at that. “That doesn’t matter. We can help each other with anything…”

Both of them sobered, knowing what Kat had thoughts of.

“Hey, let me go get my work and we’ll do that, ‘kay?” Anne asked gently, moving her hands so she could rub Kat’s hands with her thumbs.

“I’ll be here.”

Anne snuck from the room to grab her work. She wasn’t in a good mood to deal with her other family anymore. So she quickly grabbed her bag from her own room and made her way back to Kat.

“Lucky for you, some of mine is history!” Anna announced.

“Ooh, then I can definitely help!”

After finishing their work, the two cousins curled up under the covers. It was silent for a moment.

“... Are you doing okay?” Anne finally asked Kat carefully.

“I…”

“It’s okay if you aren’t…”

Kat took a deep breath and shuffled so she could wrap Anne in a hug, burying her head into the crook of her cousin’s neck. “I don’t want to go to his lessons anymore.”

Anne growled, wrapping her arms around Kat’s waist in return. “I’m not letting you. I don’t care what the fuck that old bat says.” Anne paused slightly. “And… I’m sorry I let that go on for so long…”

“It isn’t your fault…”

“But… I knew something was wrong. I knew that bastard was doing… something.”

“You didn’t… you didn’t know…” Kat broke off into a sob. It was just as bad as when the others were there.

As Kat cried, Anne only pulled her closer. Eventually, the girl drifted to sleep. She relaxed into Anne’s arms, tensing in her sleep every so often only to relax again as Anne soothed her.

Anne was left to her thoughts. Mannox and Kat (the most prominent), her family, the other thieves, even her beheading, and other mistakes and tragedies from both lives. None of it would leave her alone.

Little did she know that across London, two other former queens were having the same thoughts. Their newfound past life memories, Mannox, none of it would leave their minds. There was no chance to rest at the moment…

None of them fell asleep until much later in the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Buenos días = good morning  
> Schönen Ta = good day/afternoon  
> kleiner Dieb = little thief  
> Pardon = sorry  
> Suis-je en retard = am I late  
> Verrücktes Mädchen = crazy girl  
> Chaton = kitty  
> Merde = shit  
> Kätzchen = kitty  
> Beau discours = nice speech  
> ich mag das = I like it  
> c'est un lâche = he’s a coward
> 
> ——————————
> 
> Next chapter should be shots from the rest of their infiltration. With this group, it is absolutely chaotic but also with serious moments.
> 
> ——————————
> 
> Slime:  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/5/59/Slime_P5R.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/340?cb=20200429002937
> 
> Incubus:  
> https://cdnen.samurai-gamers.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/28032937/Incubus_2.jpg
> 
> Mandrake:  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/2/20/Mandrake_%282%29.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20190331041045


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Palace infiltration is both serious and chaotic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Meltdown, bullying

Their infiltration spanned over the course of less than a month. They had until May fifteenth. The day of the teacher meeting where Mannox would expel all of them plus Joan. They were honestly unsure if he was expelling Kat too, and that thought was all the more worrying.

They would go into the grand music hall and make their way through its winding hall, destroying shadows (and gaining Personas, in Cathy’s case) as they went.

They even discovered more areas, like the giant garden that was more of a hedge maze with a giant, gold statue of a smug Mannox in the middle.

Infiltrating the palace, they were put in danger. There were serious moments and fun, exciting moments. They had to talk about reincarnation and even deal with stuff in reality. They had competitions, protected each other, played pranks.

Those things happened, and both kinds of situations had happy endings.

~~||~~||~~

It was a normal routine in the palace. They had finished another battle (this time against an elite, so they all needed a bit of rest) and had headed back to the safe room. Cathy had gotten another strategy idea and wanted to write it down as soon as she could.

Anna and Anne were talking at the other side of the table. Cathy was hunched over the table, pen scratching furiously against paper.

She was so excited for this strategy! Becoming a Phantom Thief is one of the best things to happen to her. She couldn’t ask for better friends and she gets to focus her brain on strategies like this!

“Hey, Survivor, what are you doing with your hand?” It was Mona who asked. Anna and Anne glanced over curiously as well.

Cathy froze. One of her hands was held slightly in the air. And with a dawning anxiety and fear, Cathy realized that she had begun to flap it in her excitement and happiness.

She always did that, but it had been a long time since someone had actively witnessed her doing it.

She quickly began to spiral, thoughts negative. Oh god, were the thieves going to think it was weird? Cathy didn’t know how she could keep going if they left her like the rest.

Cathy didn’t blink back into the world until she felt a gentle pressure on her shoulders. Anna had moved the chair and was kneeling in front of her, hands in Cathy’s shoulders. All three of her teammates were looking at her with such concern and curiosity that it hurt.

Cathy also didn’t realize that she had begun to spiral. Her breathing had picked up and she had begun to rock herself. Her eyes had been squeezed shut and one arm was locked in her own iron grip. Anna’s touch was what started to bring her out of it, but she was still half in a panic attack.

“I wasn’t trying to accuse you of anything!” Morgana said quickly upon noticing Cathy’s eyes glance towards him. “I was just curious, promise!”

“Yeah, Somnolente… we weren’t trying to be mean, promise.” Anne soothed from where she stood at the table. She was ready to join Anna if she needed to.

“There’s nothing wrong with what you were doing and we aren’t angry or disgusted, promise.” Anna agreed. It was like the group knew what exactly she feared…

Cathy blinked and shrunk a little, she glanced at them warily, as if trying to weed out their ‘true thoughts’ that, unknown to her, didn’t even exist. “You don’t… you don’t think it’s weird?”

“Who told you it was weird, Bücherwurm?” Anna asked gently. Her posture, all of their postures, was relaxed except for the bit of tense muscles that showed they were fully ready to strike someone down. And in the back of her mind (the extremely small corner where the wave of panic hadn’t hit), Cathy knew she would be in the exact same position if she was to trade places.

Cathy stared at the three of them, as if trying to find an ulterior motive. It wasn’t weird? But… everyone else told her so…

Cathy’s mouth felt dry. She struggled to get her words out. “Everyone did… Henry and Thomas would yell…”

There was a moment of silence and Cathy turned her gaze to the floor, her hands grip on her arm tight enough to draw blood. She heard a muffled curse from all three.

“Hey, hey.” Anne said next, she gently stepped forward and knelt in front of Cathy next to Anna, the red queen shifting over slightly and letting go of Cathy’s shoulders. Anne gently took Cathy’s hands in her grip. “You’ll hurt yourself… And never listen to those two. Past life or this life, they are liars and scum. And everyone else just doesn’t understand, alright? You aren’t weird and none of what you do is weird, I promise you.”

“I…” Cathy couldn’t find words. She looked suspicious, but when none of the other thieves made a move, only looking at her with the corners of their lips lifting up to give her patient smiles, Cathy’s guard dropped carefully. “Thank you…”

“Of course! I can’t let a fellow thief be upset, can I?” Morgana asked in his familiar smug attitude that made Cathy chuckle.

For a moment, the group made small conversation, calming Cathy down further.

“Now, can you tell us a bit more about why you do it? We’re just curious and if you don’t want to then we completely understand.” Anna asked Cathy slowly and carefully, ready to take the question back if needed.

Cathy was silent for a moment before carefully speaking. “I have ASD… Autism.”

“And what’s that?” Morgana asked.

“I don’t…” Cathy took a deep breath before she carefully pulled her notebook off the table, turned to a clean page, and began to write.

It was a long minute before Cathy paused in her writing. She hesitated for a moment before carefully holding the notebook out to the other thieves.

Anne took it with a grin and held it for Morgana and Anna to read as well. The three poured over it for a little bit before looking back up to Cathy with reassuring smiles.

“Thank you for telling us, Bücherwurm.” Anna said gently, her familiar easy grin on her face.

“See? Not weird at all! It’s just you expressing yourself!” Anne was beaming at Cathy.

Morgana tilted his head. “I can’t claim I completely understand… but I’ll do my best to!”

Cathy stared at all three for a moment before her lips curled into the tiniest of smiles and her hand slowly began to flap and forth again.

“Am I okay to ask what it means for you to flap your hand?” Anna asked with a small laugh.

“Happy. Excited.” Cathy said before quickly leaning forward to capture Anne and Anna into a hug.

Both of them eagerly gave into the hug. The duo along with Mona seemed very happy by the fact that all of their adventuring, acceptance, and more was making Cathy happier. She had come to London seemingly depressed and then everything with Mannox happened… but they were managing to cheer her up.

“Don’t you far think you’re getting out of the group hug, Mona!”

“Agh, fine!” No one mentioned how happy Morgana seemed at the hug.

They would go on with the palace for a little longer that day, the group asking small questions with constant reassurances that Cathy didn’t have to answer if she was uncomfortable. And most of the questions, Cathy answered happily (she told them about eye contact, her fidget cube, the headphones, and as much more as she could).

No one had ever listened to her explain why she acted differently. No one treated her like a person after finding out about her autism. And Cathy felt herself being endeared and growing more attached to this ragtag, strange group the longer she was around them.

She would lead them in battle willingly, and she would be their friend as long as she could. And for once, the voice in the back of her mind telling her she was weird, that this group would abandon her like the rest, was quiet. She knew it would come back, but Cathy would do her best not to listen.

They were connected by so many things, reincarnation, Personas, and the Metaverse. But they had forged bonds both through and past those things.

And all four cherished it.

That night, Anne and Anna would go home and research autism, wanting to do everything they could to make Cathy more comfortable. Morgana would keep a close eye on Cathy like normal, helping her create some lockpicks.

And Anne would find an article on ADHD during her search. And something about its contents felt achingly familiar…

~~||~~||~~

But while they had courage and fun in the Metaverse, reality still had its ways of fucking with them.

Cathy thought her confidence in the Metaverse was raising her pride and confidence in reality. And it was! But you couldn’t stand against everything…

Only now, Cathy wasn’t dealing with it on her own.

She had left class, heading for their familiar meetup bench. Anna had gone to find Kat and Morgana was still with Cathy in the girl’s bag.

During class, Morgana had begun to join Cathy and would squeeze his way into the small desk space. He was curious and always either listening attentively to the lesson or helping Cathy with something. Anna was just as amused by the sight as Cathy and always helped hide him. Luckily, they were in the very back corner.

Now, school was over and both Cathy and Morgana were ready to do some more infiltration.

“We don’t know how much longer Anne can keep Kat out of Mannox’s lesson, we need to take his treasure as soon as possible.” Morgana told Cathy from the bag as they sat down.

“Hopefully, we are close. If the maps are right, there’s one more area to the Palace. Maybe within this week…” Cathy mumbled the last line more to herself.

“No worries! I trust you and your strategies to pull us through, Survivor!” Morgana purred, causing Cathy to chuckle.

“Could you find my fidget cube?” Cathy asked Morgana quietly as a group of students passed a little too close for comfort.

“Of course I can!” Cathy stuck her hand into the bag and quickly felt Morgana press the object into her hand.

“Thank you, Morgana. And I’m sorry you have to be crammed in there with all of my stuff.”

“I’ve already told you, it’s fine! You don’t keep much in here anyways. Supplies make up most of it.”

It was true, Cathy had begun separating her schoolwork and notebooks (the exception was the notebook she kept in the supply and Morgana bag for writing strategies) into a book bag she brought to school with them.

For several minutes it was quiet, Cathy focusing on her fidget cube with the occasional small hum and Mona could be heard shifting through supplies, making a last minute check that they had everything.

That was when the disaster started.

“Hey look, it’s the criminal transfer student!” A loud voice taunted. Cathy’s hands paused in their movement and out of the corner of her eye, she could spot two boys and two girls making their way over, laughing. There were the ones who avoided her like the plague, and then the small handful who were like this.

A low hiss could be heard and for a moment, Cathy seriously thought Morgana was going to come flying out of the bag and find the one who taunted her.

They reached her and Cathy flinched as they promptly surrounded her. Dammit... This wasn’t shadows, she couldn’t fight back without causing problems.

“Hey criminal! How has your day been? Stab anyone recently?” One of the girls taunted. Two teens were in front of her and two were behind her leaning against the bench.

Cathy didn’t offer them a response.

“Oi, she asked a question!” One of the boys snapped, reaching forward to smack the side of Cathy’s head.

Cathy hunched down lower, inhaling sharply through her nose. So they weren’t afraid to be physical…

For a minute or two, the four students talked above her, occasionally asking her a question that she didn’t respond to. The silence was usually met by another slap to the head. But the stinging pain didn’t hurt as much as Cathy expected it to.

“Hey guys, do you think she would talk if we took her little toy?” One of the girls finally asked with a malicious grin.

The other three’s eyes lit up at that suggestion and Cathy quickly moved to pull the cube back to where she could hold it tightly.

But before she could, the boy of the group reached forward and slapped the cube out of Cathy’s hands.

That was the exact second chaos erupted.

Cathy fell into a panic almost immediately, leaping up and shoving the boy away from where he had taken several steps closer to her. The boy yelped and his friends were quickly catching him. Cathy had shoved him hard in the chest and the boy was regaining his breath as he was steadied.

From there, Cathy had grabbed the cube and was trying to focus as she stamped down the rage and tried to hide from the suddenly too bright voices and too bright sunlight.

Cathy was crouched on the ground and let out a cry as she herself was suddenly shoved to the floor. The cube went spinning from her hand and Cathy instinctively curled in on herself, laying on her side on the too hot too rough cement.

She was already caught off guard by the verbal attack and then the sudden physical attack, but then yelling broke out.

Her senses flew into overdrive as her emotions and panic overwhelmed her. And so did her memories. Thomas, Henry, the court. Their yelling and abuse flashed before her eyes. She felt that familiar sickness pool in her stomach and Cathy could only curl further in on herself, willing her body not to gag, heave, and vomit.

Her eyes were clamped shut, the visions flashing behind closed eyelids. Her hands were squeezed tight to her ears, marks and dots of blood appearing where her nails made contact with her skin.

Cathy wanted her senses to stop screaming. She wanted the men to stop screaming. She wanted her Personas to stop crying out in fury and rage at the injustice of it all. She wanted everything to shut the fuck up!

With her heart beating loud in her ears and the blood rushing through her skull, Cathy didn’t hear the distressed noises that escaped her lips. Screaming, crying, whining. She wanted to lash out again, her hands were occupied. So Cathy began to kick, thrashing her feet out in the air.

Cathy couldn’t fight back here. She didn’t have the power and strength that she did in the Metaverse. She was weak and stuck with her mental and physical demons.

As the split second events took place, Anna and Anne had met up and we’re making their way over when they saw the scene. The two’s fast walk turned into a sprint and simultaneously, Morgana was launching out of the bag. All three were in blurs.

They just knew that Cathy, their friend, the person they considered as a leader, had been attacked and was in a panic. That was the only motivation they needed.

Anne was in front of the teenagers in the span of a second. Morgana had startled all of them but wasn’t actually attacking, he was in front of Cathy protectively, staying out of the range of Cathy’s swinging legs.

While the cat and green queen faced off protectively, Anna knelt by Cathy’s side. She was almost with Morgana and Anne, but quickly realized that they had the defense handled. So she grabbed Cathy’s bag and knelt by her side.

She knew that Cathy probably had some items in her bag. She began whispering soothing words to Cathy as she searched the bag. One of Anna's hands rested on Cathy’s shoulder and the blue queen tried to move away for a moment. Then, she seemed to take the touch as a focus point and leaned more into it. Her legs stopped kicking but she was rocking herself, eyes still clenched shut in pain and hands pressed tightly over her ears.

By this point, a small crowd of the remaining students had gathered, whispering and murmuring to each other.

For a second, Anna heard the boys and Anne exchange insults and furious comments, all originating around Cathy.

Then, Anne must have said something to set the first boy off. Because that was when the first boy’s fist lashed out, aimed directly for Anne’s face.

While their reflexes, strength, and speed weren’t as good in reality as they were in the Metaverse, (what they did there was almost impossible compared to before) they still had gained some of those capabilities in reality, only to a smaller extent.

So when that fist came towards Anne, the only thing she had to do was slip to the side, grab his arm and twist. Red rage pricked at the corners of her vision and she knew for a fact that she would have flipped him so she could.

It was a sad fact that he was too heavy for her to do so. Hmm, Anna probably could. The fact that the fight could move their expulsion deadline to today was a worrying thought that was quickly pressed to the back of her mind by the glowing fury.

The boy cried out at the pressure and backed up, staring wide eyed at Anne. The two girls and the other guy all glared at her.

Then, the first boy lunged again. Anne met him head on and the two tumbled to the ground.

“Scheisse—! Mona watch her! Hang on, Bücherwurm!” And then Anna was leaping to Anne’s side, practically tackling the second boy that was about to slam into Anne. The girls immediately began cheering for the boys. Morgana remained crouched by Cathy’s side, whispering to the girl, nuzzling her arm and forehead, and looking for any chance he could get to join the fight.

The fight had started in half a second, and it was stopped just as quickly.

“And what exactly are you doing?”

The teenagers all paused from where they had gotten back to their feet to face off and turned to find one Catalina Aragon. The golden clad teenager had a cold look on her face. But it wasn’t directed towards Cathy and the other queens, it was all aimed towards the bullies.

“What does it matter to you Aragon, you religious bitch?! Go back to serving the principal and the staff or whatever the fuck you do!” One of the girls barked.

For a moment, a flash of pain appeared in Catalina’s eyes. But it was quickly replaced by the original cold stare.

“All four of you will be leaving this group alone right now.”

“What do you care about a criminal?! She’s a fucking freak! She’s already forming a gang and she attacked Jason! She’ll snap one of these days, and you’ll regret stepping in!” One of the girls countered.

“That’s my sister and her friends you just hurt. I suggest you leave them alone and go home.” Upon seeing the defiant looks, Catalina added a threatening, “Now.”

The bullies all paled slightly. Then, all four turned tail and scattered. They all separated and vanished into different directions. The crowd dispersed almost as quickly. Luckily, the teachers hadn’t been attracted by the crowd, the events having been short.

The second the danger was gone, the thieves were by Cathy’s side. Morgana had been by her side the entirety of the fight, keeping a careful eye and trying to ground her.

Cathy had stopped kicking, but was still curled up and trying to block off her senses, rocking herself and whining softly.

Catalina was swiftly making her way over and sitting on the ground, reaching over and pulling Cathy up into her arms. She secured an arm around Cathy’s waist and pulled the girl’s head into the crook of her neck. She covered Cathy’s exposed ear with her own hand, and didn’t complain when Cathy’s hands took a deathgrip onto Catalina’s arm.

For a moment, Cathy squirmed in Catalina’s arms. But then she went limp and actually relaxed further into the embrace.

“Shh, just relax, it’s safe and quiet now.” Catalina murmured.

“Is she having an overload?” Anne asked, tapping her fingers against the back of her other hand.

“Looks like it to me…” Anna replied, she reached over and placed a gentle hand on Anne’s shoulder and let Morgana up to perch on her own shoulder. “Catalina’s got her.”

At some point, Kat had reached their side. “Is Cathy okay?” She asked immediately.

“She will be Chaton.” Anne replied. Kat bit her lip nervously but nodded, her eyes staying glued to the scene in front of her.

(During their days on infiltration, they always made sure to keep up with Kat. They would hang out with her, comfort her. And Kat latched onto the friendship, the comfort and kindness, returning it with her own. She may not be a thief, but she sure as hell was one of their own.)

Eventually, Cathy calmed down and everyone was able to gather around without causing her to spiral further. They all began whispering, Cathy staying silent and trying to sign when someone else walked up.

“I believe this is yours?”

All five girls glanced over to the origin of the soft voice. They found a girl dressed in white and black, the grey uniform blending with it. She had long blond hair pulled back on top and was smiling gently at them, looking mainly to Cathy. In her outstretched hand she held out the blue queen’s fidget cube.

For a moment, Cathy stared. Then she slowly nodded her head, reaching up to take the cube from her position in Catalina’s arms. The other girl handed it over with a smile, which turned a little sad.

“I’m sorry something like that happened to you… I must be going but I do hope your day goes better!” And then the girl was off, practically speed walking down the sidewalk in her haste to get somewhere.

Everyone watched her go before Anne started chuckling. “Well, Somnolente. Looks like you’ve met all of the queens!”

From there, the group escorted Cathy to the station, where she proceeded home with Catalina and Morgana. Away from the two non-thieves, the other thieves would quietly reassure Cathy that it was alright to take a break from infiltration especially after what happened.

The tube ride was rather uneventful (Catalina did have to calm Cathy again, but it was far more minor compared to the meltdown back in front of the school) and soon, the two humans and one cat reached home. As they walked in the front door, Cathy put her bags down, letting Morgana clamber out. She could put them upstairs later.

“Movie?” Cathy asked in a whisper, glancing towards the television and tugging on Catalina’s sleeve. Catalina’s gaze softened as she very quickly realized what Cathy was trying to ask.

“I think now is the perfect time.”

So that’s what they did. Catalina made them both mugs of hot chocolate and they curled up together on the couch, Cathy getting control over the movie. Morgana didn’t leave Cathy’s side through any of it, curled up on the girl’s lap. None of them moved from their spots for the rest of the night.

The panic and stinging pain from the bullies’ slaps and the meltdown slowly faded the further the night went on and Cathy found herself drifting into a blissful sleep.

~~||~~||~~

A blast of shadows quickly decimated an oncoming shadow, one weak to that magic.

“Heads up!”

Ghost ducked as Hound leapt forward, striking down the approaching shadow.

Then, Survivor vaulted over Hound, hitting that same shadow with a blast of fire magic summoned by Cait Sith. She then spun to face another shadow racing up behind all of them, quickly summoning Eligor to knock it back with a physical skill, cleave. Then, all it took was Mona summoning Zorro to hit the shadow with a strong wind skill.

“Good work everyone!” Mona praised, looking very proud of the queen trio.

“So, are we going to back out for the day?” Hound rolled her shoulders back. “We made it far!”

Survivor hummed and shook her head. “Just a little bit further. I think there’s another safe room a little further ahead.”

“Then let’s get moving everyone.” Mona told everyone, stepping a little further down the hall.

Suddenly, it seemed like a lightbulb went off in Ghost’s head. “Let’s see who can destroy the most shadows by the time we reach the safe room!” Ghost declared, a smirk on her face.

“Oh, it’s on!” Hound shot back, body straightening and an excited glint appearing in her eyes.

“It sounds fun.” Survivor agreed before everyone looked to Mona. The thief was silent for a moment.

“Alright… I’m going to sit out though. And everyone needs to continue to be vigilant and alert during your fun, alright?!” Morgana demanded, tail swishing angrily. “I don’t want any injured thieves!”

(They all preferred to not remember the time a shadow’s blade came inches too close to Anne’s neck. The following panic attack had hurt all of them, not just Anne. And it hurt even worse when they had to explain to Morgana exactly why Anne freaked out further than just possible death.)

After everyone gave their assent to Mona’s condition, the game began.

Ghost and Hound powered forward. As they continued down their path, many shadows fell to their weapons and skills.

Sometimes, they worked together. Hound used her axe to launch Ghost towards a shadow, one the earliest strategies Survivor developed.

Sometimes they stole each other’s kills. Hound finished off the shadow Ghost cornered with a blast of ice magic fired by Artemis’s arrow, earning her a competitive scowl.

But it was clear that both were taking out as many shadows as they could. Their magic and energy was quickly being drained by all of the useage. So they did one last burst of attacks, counting as they went.

Nemesis chuckled happily as she called the curse magic that struck down a shadow creeping up on Hound. Artemis nodded to herself as she returned the favor to Ghost with an arrow of ice magic. “EIGHTEEN!”

Then both quickly swept past each other to where they were back to back. They turned to melee weapons, their magic having finally been drained. It took a minute of fighting, but they struck down the shadows. “NINETEEN!”

And then, they turned to face each other again. Hound fired her rifle over Ghost’s shoulders and Ghost threw a shuriken over Hound’s shoulder, destroying the already weakened Andras and Kelpie that had been creeping up behind the both of them.

They gazed at each other challengingly for a moment. Triumphant grins were stretched across their face.

“TWENTY!”

Silence for a beat. Then, realization hit. Ghost and Hound stared at each other, gaping. They had gotten the same number of shadows.

“There’s no way.” Ghost said after a moment, eyes narrowing.

“Oh, this has got to be a joke.” Hound agreed, her eyes also narrowing as she brought her axe up to rest on her shoulder.

“THERE’S NO WAY WE TIED!”

“YEAH, SO WHAT WAS YOUR REAL NUMBER?!”

“ME?!”

“Twenty-four.”

Ghost and Hound both blinked at the new number and whipped their heads to look at Survivor, who had arrived with Mona when they began arguing. Mona was laughing on the floor and Survivor was watching the two with a tilted head.

“That means I win, yeah?”

For a moment, Hound and Ghost swore a smug smirk passed Survivor’s face, but neither could confirm it. Instead, both just gaped at her for several seconds.

“How did you—?”

“What—?!”

Survivor chuckled. “A magician never reveals their secrets…”

“ÜBERLEBENDE—!”

“OH, C'EST PARTI—!”

Hound and Ghost’s competition would continue for their time as Phantom Thieves. And the two never could figure out how Survivor always got more shadows than them.

Mona still thought it was hilarious and maintained that he wasn’t competing because he could easily win.

~~||~~||~~

Anne Boleyn, Ghost, was bored.

Sure, she loved fighting shadows. It was something for her to release every single pent up emotion on. She got to do it with her newfound friends too, a major bonus.

But while she still loved doing it, whenever the adrenaline wore off, she would find herself losing focus and becoming more bored with the familiar scenery of the music hall and ongoing puzzles.

That was why, when she wandered off from the others to have some fun, she couldn’t really be blamed!

Now, Anne didn’t like being called dumb. It was something she heard commonly and she hated every second of it. Home, school, people usually had something to say about her intelligence.

They never knew that Anne was smart as hell, she just couldn’t focus on that damn school work. It was part of why she liked theatre, it gave her times where she was able to move, act.

The only thing Anne liked about their assumptions was that they never saw the pranks coming. Intelligent, planned pranks. Pranks that when she wasn’t distracted, Anne could plan elaborately. She couldn’t be caught after all. The rumors and ‘dumb’ comments were enough, troublemaker didn’t need to be included to the list.

She couldn’t go overboard in reality. She had to be sneaky and there was no possible way for her to prank her Father and Step-Grandmother.

But this? This was another world where Anne could cause as much trouble as she truly wanted to (well, as long as she considered that fact that this was someone’s subconsciousness and who knew what would happen if she fucked it up).

That meant Anne could prank the shadows. She could prank the shadows and even Mannox’s shadow. She could release that energy always pent up inside of her towards not only battles, but pranks.

That was why Anne armed herself with supplies. Cans of spray paints, smoke bombs she had stolen off Cathy and Morgana, and some other stuff. All squirreled away in a backpack that the others thankfully didn’t question.

The shadows would never see Ghost coming.

~~||~~||~~

Guard one was taking a break. After all, the thieves were further in the palace, not back in the classrooms. There was no need for alarm.

Guard two rounded the corner at the end of the hall.

They both greeted each other at the same time. They began to patrol together, making their way through the classroom’s winding halls. They didn’t appear to hear the screams.

“Those Phantom Thieves have made their way further into the Hall. The Great Conductor may direct most of us to that area soon.”

“Do you think we’ll get sent there?”

“I hope so! I’m sure I could take out the thieves no problem!”

“I don’t know… I’ve heard that they’ve taken out three elites!”

“Ha! Rumors and gossip!”

Then, both heard a laugh. A mischievous one that was just asking for trouble if they went near.

Both guards froze upon seeing a figure at the end of the hallway. It was one of the thieves. Dressed in green and giving them a mischievous grin, both guards recognized her as the one they called Ghost.

“Bonjour les perdants!” Ghost crowed before quickly sprinting down the hallway.

“Hey, stop!”

“Get back here!”

The guards quickly raced after the thief. They ignored the thought of just how bizarre this was…

Where were the other thieves? Why would one show themselves like this? But the guards were under orders from their great conductor.

They were going to catch that thief.

They made their way down several hallways, the guards always a few steps behind the green thief. Finally, they came across a doorway.

The guards didn’t notice Ghost hop over something. They continued their run, only to hit a small string stretched across the doorway.

For the guards, it went to slow motion, their eyes widening almost frantically.

In less than a second after hitting the tripwire, both shadows were covered head to toe in glitter. They yelped in pain as the glitter assaulted their eyes, blinding them.

Then, as they stumbled frantically, batons dropped and hands held over their eyes, one guard stepped into a looped rope on the floor. That guard was dragged up into the air with a shriek, dangling him inside down.

The other guard was kicked from behind, sending him flailing to the floor. The guard laid there, still trying to remove glitter from his eyes as something heavy, a bookshelf, also fell down on him, pinning him to the floor.

Before either had time to recover and free themselves, much less transform into their shadow selves, the fainting laughter showed that their attacker, the thief, had vanished.

For a moment, it was silent. Both shadows still struggling to clear their eyes and free themselves.

“None of the others will know about this.”

“Agreed. AGH!” The rope snapped and the guard hit the floor with a pained groan.

Taking a break from her pranks, Ghost found a balcony overlooking the Music Hall’s garden the thieves recently discovered. She hopped up onto the overhang of the door so she was hidden from any passing guards.

She fidgeted with the can of spray paint in her hand as she looked over the garden.

Faintly, she wondered if the others noticed her disappearance by this point. She was sure they did. She snickered at the thought of the group finding her path of destruction.

They’d definitely catch up soon, probably scold her too. But there was one more prank Anne wanted to try and pull before they found her.

Pranking the shadow guards was fun, but Anne wanted to go bigger. She wanted to prank the Palace’s main shadow himself, Mannox. She was too furious at him to just let her pranks stop without that one big bruise to his ego.

She just knew she needed some way to get back to Mannox. Something to satisfy her until she could finally steal his treasure.

That was when Ghost noticed the giant, gold statue in the center of the gardens. It was gold and garish and Ghost hated just to look at it, that smug smirk on a half naked, golden statue. Ghost glanced from the statue to the can of spray paint she held in her hand.

Perfect.

When Ghost questioned if the others had begun looking for her, she was exactly right. The others had long noticed by now and began their search.

“Wie zum Teufel did we lose her?” Hound huffed as they backtracked quickly. 

“I just wish we noticed sooner…” Survivor whispered under her breath as the ducked around another corner.

“We have to hurry, what if the shadows got her?” Mona hissed to them.

Both of the humans’ eyes narrowed. It was Hound who spoke. “Alright, we’re stopping that thought right there. Ghost probably just got separated. There’s no way she would let herself be captured like that.”

They reached the courtyard and were now under the statue as Mona grumbled so the others couldn’t hear him. “She’s a good fighter, but with how loud she is…” Just then, the smallest thief looked up and gaped in surprise.

“Wait guys, look up!” Mona alerted the others. The other two looked up and could only stare in surprise.

Ghost was perched on the shoulder of the giant statue of Mannox, spray painting onto its face. She had begun to paint the ‘skin’ pink with a black circle encasing one eye.

“Ghost!” It was Hound who called.

Ghost jolted and looked that them. Then a beaming grin stretched across her face. “There you guys are!”

“What are you doing?” Survivor spoke up, tilting her head curiously.

“I’m pranking Mannox! I’ve already gotten a few of the shadows!” Ghost tittered, looking very pleased as she managed to climb down.

“By spray painting his statue?!” Mona hissed.

“I think it’s hilarious.” Hound spoke up, a very amused smile on her face.

“Listen, fighting shadows is fun and all, but I wanted to do something else.” Ghost explained easily, tossing the can back and forth between her hands. “And what better to do than fuck with the shadows and, even better, Mannox!”

“We need to focus on the palace!”

“Come on, Mona! You have to admit you want to do it too! I saw the way you eyed up the spray paints!”

“Well… wait no, we need to focus on the treasure!”

Everyone glanced at Survivor, who carefully grabbed another can of spray paint from Ghost’s bag. She studied it for a moment before turning and tossing it to Hound, who caught it easily.

“We have several more days before the deadline… what plans did you have?” Survivor eventually asked.

Ghost beamed and put her backpack down. The other thieves listened with interest as Ghost began to explain all of the pranks she had put together and also her plans for the statue, rambling in the process.

After Ghost explained her plans and pranks, the other three actually looked eager. (That didn’t stop Survivor from giving Ghost a small, rather peaceful scolding about separating from the group later on)

Survivor picked up the third and final can of spray paint that had been left on the ground and shook it. She looked back to the others.

“Well Phantom Thieves, I vote for trying out vandalism.”

And after they finished their vandalism, they proceeded to set up several more pranks throughout the palace, leading helpless shadows straight to them.

It was later that Mannox came storming into the gardens. His guards had alerted him as to what happened and he came rushing out. His jaw dropped upon seeing the state of his once grand statue.

It’s once golden ‘skin’ was spray painted a bright pink, someone had given it a mustache and black eye. The underwear was painted navy, but they had left gold in the front, as a certain symbolism. They had spray painted red cheeks and done much more to turn the statue into a colorful disgrace. At some point, they had even chipped the nose off (no one had to know that someone simply slipped and broke it).

Mannox let out a cry of shock and anger. His guards took a slight step back from the noise.

“DAMN THIEVES!”

He never noticed the four thieves laughing at his expression and cry from up high before they left the palace for the day, laughter never fading.

It was much more fun than the group thought it would be. And if this Phantom Thievery continued, they were certain they would be helping Ghost with her pranks more often.

~~||~~||~~

Throughout all of the infiltration, one thing was clear to all four. They were gaining confidence and happiness.

Cathy, Survivor, was so much stronger than before, moving towards forgiving herself and finding the happiness and friendship she never truly had. Anne, Ghost, was becoming less spiteful and angry, the world that wronged her in so many ways was finally giving back to her with actual friends and a way to give others their own justice.

Anna, Hound, was becoming more protective of them and noticeably happier, she hadn’t had anyone other than Kat and now she was gaining friends and avenging her best friend. Morgana, Mona, was less spiteful and losing his edges (even if he still was smug and sarcastic), he clearly had come to care about the queens and took the role of guide and healer with pride, looking after the queens and joining their antics.

Yeah, they were having fun during the month of infiltration. Learning more about each other, releasing pent up energy and emotion on shadows.

But now? It was time to end it. They were going to free the students from the abuse and oppression. They were going to avenge Kat.

They were going to steal Mannox’s treasure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chaton = kitty  
> Somnolente = sleepy  
> Überlebende = Survivor  
> Oh, c'est parti! = Oh, it’s on!  
> Bonjour les perdants! = hello losers!  
> Wie zum Teufel = how the hell
> 
> ——————————
> 
> Did I project on Anne a bit about being unable to focus on schoolwork? Yes. Did I accidentally make the bullying scene longer than I wanted it to be? Yes again.
> 
> I might make a separate story for moments from when they do infiltration, but that’s not a promise. I didn’t want to draw the whole story out for infiltrations, so I did this! Two slightly more serious moments and two fun moments. Also plus a bit of fighting because I really need to work on writing fighting scenes (and it’s a main part of P5)!
> 
> ——————————
> 
> Cait Sith:  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/d/dd/Cait_Sith.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20100512055013
> 
> Eligor:  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/0/0f/KWEligor.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20110902054823
> 
> Andras:  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/9/95/AndrasSMT.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20080803014831
> 
> Kelpie:  
> https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/megamitensei/images/3/37/Kelpie.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20080803024539


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The thieves take on a Blooming Villain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: mentioned rape

They finally reached the final area of the palace.

It was a second stage. This one bigger than the other. While the first one was brighter and with more gold, this one seemed to be more grand and made for the rich. The stage had velvet curtains and rich wooden flooring, there were rows upon rows of seating too, much more than the first stage, for many people.

The conductor’s stand wasn’t on the stage, directly in front of the performers. Instead, there was a path connecting the stage to a circular platform that was placed in the middle of the seats. In the middle of the attention.

The conductor’s stand was just as bright and garish as everything else that seemed to represent Mannox and his self-importance. But the stand wasn’t the important part.

Above the stand was a glowing mist. It shined and sparkled, but wasn’t an actual object. It was simply a shroud.

“Where’s the treasure?” It was Hound who asked, studying the mist. “Surely it isn’t that cloud…”

Mona shook his head. “No, that’s it!”

“Tu rigoles!” Ghost looked very confused. “We can’t steal that!”

Mona scoffed. “Of course we can’t! There’s something else we need to do first!”

“Something else?” Survivor asked, her gaze still trained on the mist.

“That’s right, we need a calling card.” Mona explained with a nod.

“... Perhaps we should leave the palace before you explain? We could be interrupted.” Survivor explained, glancing back to the exit.

Mona nodded. “Right. But before we leave, we still should make a plan to steal it.”

And as if on cue, two guards came walking under them. Their voices drifted up to the thieves.

“Did you hear about the performance tomorrow?” One of the guard’s seemed rather excited.

“Yes! The great conductor always directs his performers so beautifully!” The second guard seemed gleeful. “And it’s always a pleasure to see him put the disobedient performers in their place!”

Next to them, Ghost let out a small snarl. “Directs my ass! Son abus…”

Hound was gently reaching a hand over to Ghost's shoulder, keeping the other queen steady both physically and emotionally.

“A performance, hmm?” Mona seemed very intrigued by the shadow's words. “Perhaps we can plan around that…”

“They do lights out at some points…” Survivor was quickly racking her brain for what she knew about music performances. “Maybe we can get down and get the treasure…” Survivor had quickly formed a plan after that. A rather simple one. “Alright, I know how we can do it.”

“Alright then, let’s head out for the day! Tomorrow, we can end this!” Hound was the one who declared. “Wir haben es geschafft.”

It didn’t take long for them to be standing in front of the school again. The sun was steadily going down, showing that it was late afternoon.

Of course, no one was around due to how late in the evening it was. And the thieves should head home too, but they had to talk about something first.

“Alles klar dann! We have our route to the treasure. You mentioned it shows up with a ‘calling card?’” Anna spoke up, glancing to the cat.

“That’s right, we need to send Mannox a calling card!” Morgana nodded, beginning to pace slightly.

“And that makes the treasure an actual object?” Anne asked curiously.

“The palace ruler needs to know that we’re coming for it. That’s the only way it will appear.” Mona stopped his pacing. “It’s all about cognition. It should last for only a day too…”

“So we need to send a calling card for the treasure and steal the treasure on the same day. Got it.” Anna’s mouth then twisted into a concerned frown. “Wouldn’t that be evidence? They could figure us out.”

Mona shook his head, giving them all a proud grin. “Not if we’re careful. And I’m confident this team will be just fine!”

“Alright then.” Cathy agreed as all of the thieves relaxed. “Now, let's decide who does what.”

They eventually decided on what everyone was doing. Anne would draw a logo (she insisted) and make the actual card. Cathy would write the message along with final preparations with Morgana, who would also oversee everything to make sure no one could get caught.. Anna would deliver the cards to the school, getting there before anyone else could.

Tomorrow they would finally end Mannox’s abuse.

~~||~~||~~

The next morning, the thieves all headed to school like usual. Catalina and Kat accompanied them, but stopped outside for a moment, leaving the three thieves to step inside.

Students were whispering when the queens all reached the entrance hall of the school. They murmured, surprise and confusion littering their voices and expressions.

And it was easy to see the source.

Pasted on lockers, the walls, and especially the announcements board were red calling cards. Some were of the ‘logo’ Anne had drafted last night, a black mask with flames flying out of one eye and a top hat.

And others had words.

‘To Henry Mannox, the sinner of lust who has titled himself a great conductor. You have been plaguing the school for too long, portraying yourself as a gentle and kind teacher. But we know the truth. You have abused students, oppressed them as you forced them to play your twisted music. You have even forced your desires onto them, forcing them to please you sexually. We shall steal your distorted desires so that you may confess to your sins! From, the Phantom Thieves of Hearts.’

Anna and Anne both flicked their gazes over to Cathy. “You really are a writer!” Anne was the one who spoke with a chuckle.

“Well, I wasn’t the only one who did the work. Morgana helped me, you drew the logo, and Anna put all of this up.” Cathy said almost sheepishly.

“Hey, speaking of the logo, why a top hat? Wouldn’t a crown have been cool?” Anna asked Anne, looking at the crowd of students.

“Oh yeah, I definitely almost put a crown! But Morgana isn’t a queen and wouldn’t that kind of give us away…? Since we’re the queens and all.” Anne explained, she had pulled one of the cards off the wall and was fidgeting with it.

“Agh, I wanna see!” Morgana spoke up.

“We’ll make sure to take one for you Morgana.” Cathy said with a small laugh.

Just then, Catalina and Kat walked up. The two had fallen behind and were just now reaching the thieves, catching sight of the cards.

“What is all of this…?” Catalina asked, looking at one of the cards on the lockers. “Phantom Thieves of Hearts…?”

“Yeah!” Anne eagerly jumped in, a certain glint in her eyes. “They’re exposing Mannox’s abuse!”

“Abuse?” Catalina looked a little in shock and her brows furrowed in both concern and dawning horror as she read over the card. “What… is all of it true? How did I never notice…”

Kat was staring almost blankly at the cards. “I… Is this true? That they’re going to make him confess…?”

The three thieves gave Kat hopeful smiles. “I don’t see why it isn’t. We’ll just have to wait and see.” Cathy told the pink clad teen.

A stray tear made its way down Kat’s cheek. “I want this to be true. I want him to be stopped.”

That was when the realization hit Catalina. “He’s hurt you… you’re one of the victims described in the card.”

Kat shakily nodded and sank into Anna and Anne’s embrace as they both carefully hugged her and kept her between them, away from prying eyes.

The group stood there for a moment, the three (four) thieves all rather protective. Kat’s once dull gaze had turned hopeful and she was recovering from her small episode. Catalina was rereading the card, a conflicted look on her gaze that was quickly turning into a sickly look mixed with a cold fury.

Across the crowd, Cathy noticed Joan with three other girls. She wore the same hopeful stare that Kat did. She also shot glances towards the thieves every so often.

“What is going on here?!”

Everyone’s voices hushed and everyone’s heads jolted to stare at the source of the voice. Mannox had made his way to the crowd and grabbed a card off a nearby locker. His usually fake kindness had been completely thrown aside for pure rage. Some of his students were in the crowd and flinched back at the sight, including Kat and Joan.

He stared blankly at the card for another moment before turning back to the gathered students. He quickly switched the rage to a calm look. “Now, now everyone… This is just some sort of prank! Please get to your classes!”

As the students began to disperse, Mannox made eye contact with the thieves and was quickly storming over.

“Catalina, get Kat to her class.” Cathy said to her godsister. She didn’t seem very bothered by the storming Mannox.

For a moment, it seemed Catalina was going to protest, but then she noticed the fear on Kat’s face, and how a certain glaze had entered her eyes.

“Do not do anything stupid.” That was an order as Catalina carefully took hold of Kat’s hand, making sure the other girl could see her do it. It didn’t stop Kat’s flinch, but she didn’t panic either. “Let’s get to class, alright?”

Kat was swiftly removed from the scene, allowing the thieves to face off against Mannox, who had finally reached them.

“Did you do this?!” Mannox practically snarled. No one was in the area, allowing him to drop his act.

“We don’t know what you’re talking about, sir.” Anna was the one who spoke, standing protectively next to the other two queens.

“Don’t lie to me you little shits!” Mannox hissed out, eyes narrowing. “You’re the only ones who would dare do this!”

“Mr. Mannox, you’re expelling us anyways, why would we cause more trouble for ourselves?” It was Cathy who asked, tilting her head almost in a challenge.

“I don’t know what you’re trying to pull… but in a few days, you’re out of here.” Mannox replied after a moment.

No one responded to his words.

Instead, Anne stepped forward, a glare on her face. “I believe this is yours.” She practically shoved the calling card in her hand towards Mannox.

Mannox’s face seemed to twist further into a scowl and he was swiftly snatching it from her hand. And it was that moment where the world shifted again.

They could see the faint outlines of the music hall around them. Mannox had taken on the looks of his shadow self.

“You want to take my treasure?” Shadow Mannox huffed, an arrogant smirk on his face. “You’ll never get to it! Enjoy the show, thieves…”

And just like that, things went back to normal.

“Get to your classes! The three of you are gonna be expelled anyways… I don’t have the patience for you.” Reality’s Mannox snapped before he spun on his heel and stalked away, ripping cards off lockers and moving to speak with Principal Cromwell, who had just arrived.

“After school, his treasure will be ours.” Morgana told all three from the bag.

They all nodded and quickly made their way to their classes. They never noticed a familiar shy blonde with a computer in hand watching them all the while. School went by in a blur of anticipation, anxiety, and energy. After school, they gathered at that familiar bench in front of the school.

As they stood in a circle, Cathy let her gaze drift over each of her three fellow thieves. They all shared the same determination as she did. It was time to end Mannox’s reign as the so-called great conductor. When Cathy spoke, it was Survivor who declared the words.

“It’s showtime.”

~~||~~||~~

The performance was in full swing. Mannox was conducting on his own special platform the thieves and seen before. His usually open robe was now closed, another show of him hiding what he was doing. Whenever one of the students on stage messed up, a guard came onto the stage and dragged them off. Mannox seemed both exasperated and amused by the sight. A cheering crowd was in the seats, enjoying the performance.

The treasure had appeared and was laying on Mannox’s stand when not in use. It was a golden conductor’s baton, used to conduct the injured and panicking students on stage.

Finally, the lights dimmed to black. That was when the thieves made their move.

A rope was lowered from the rafters and attached to the end was Morgana. The other three thieves were above, Ghost and Hound pulling the rope as Survivor kept watch through the darkness, ready to intervene if anything went wrong.

Mona, who was now holding the baton and being pulled up, purred and his eyes seemed to shine as he held the treasure close. “Treasure~!”

Ghost shared a glance with the others. “Did we break the cat?” She was met with shrugs.

“Maybe he just likes shiny things.” Hound replied in a whisper.

But then, things went downhill.

Something hit the rope and it snapped. Mona let out a yowl of surprise as he plunged to the ground. The baton went rolling across the platform as the lights suddenly flashed back on.

Mannox stood on the walkway connecting the platform to the stage, his robe still hiding his body like during the performance. He let out a laugh as he reached down to pick up the baton. Kat’s cognition had reappeared, even after Ghost destroyed it, and now the cognition was tucked under Mannox’s arm. The bruises and bikini seemed to catch more attention than before.

“There you all are.” Mannox hummed as he twirled the baton in his hand, watching the thieves that had jumped down next to their fallen member. The four glared back defiantly. “I knew you would all show up! And I was right!”

“We’re right here.” Survivor announced, her staff already held in her hand. “And we’ll be taking that treasure.”

Mannox snorted, a cocky grin on his face. “You think I would let you take this? It’s the core of this world, proof that I am the great conductor! I’ll never let you get your hands on it!”

Ghost pointed her dagger at Mannox. “And what makes you think that’ll stop us? We’re going to stop your abuse, Lâche!”

“Ha!” Mannox gave them a wide smirk. “It wasn’t abuse… they wanted it.”

“Wanted it—?!” Hound snapped.

“You think they wanted that kind of pain?!” Survivor questioned.

“If they didn’t, then why did no one ever report me?” Mannox barked out a laugh. “I’m sure Cromwell knows and the same thing happened in that past life! No one ratted me out there!”

“Past life—!” Survivor was the first one to break out of her shock. “You remember?”

The corner of Mannox’s lips twisted further upwards. “Of course I remember! This little bitch right here almost had me executed!” Mannox grabbed Cognitive Katherine roughly by the shoulders and pulled her in front of him to fully face the others, but her lovesick stare wasn’t deterred as Mannox smirked at the thieves from over her shoulder. “Even after I showed her just how much I wanted her! But I talked my way out of it… and now, I can have again, without those other damned fools trying to steal her from me.”

“I’m all yours now Mister Mannox…” The cognition practically purred.

The visible fury of the thieves rose. Anne and Anna both looked ready to sprint for the shadow, their hands already grasping their masks as a low growl exited Anna’s throat and Anne’s eyes were slitted with fury. Cathy’s face had become blank, but if one looked closely, they would see the platform under her slowly beginning to melt, Athena’s nuclear magic making an appearance. Her magic wasn’t the only one making an appearance, the room’s temperature had noticeably lowered and if you looked close enough, you could see the non-living type of shadows twisting and trembling in agitation.

Mona didn’t look away from the shadow and cognition in front of them, a scowl firmly in place. “It must be because this shadow reflects the true self… he was reincarnated like you three, and only his subconsciousness remembers.”

“Whatever the case.” The blade of Hound’s axe hit the ground with a threatening crack. “She didn’t want it. Then or now. You just want her for her looks and you stole everything from her!”

Ghost jumped in with her own glare. “We’re going to help her steal that life back. Starting with taking that treasure!”

There was a moment of silence before a dark chuckle escaped Shadow Mannox’s lips. He leaned forward to whisper into Katherine’s ears from where he held her in front of him. His hands rubbed up and down her bare arms and waist greedily. “Go join the others, my sweet. We have a show to perform.”

Cognitive Kat’s eyes grew in excitement and she was quickly heading back to stand backstage where the other students all gathered.

Then, Mannox changed, moving back to stand on the actual stage. Just like the guards, he shifted and became a burst of shadows before forming into something far more monstrous.

He was as tall as the stage, sitting down as he was too large to safely stand. He wasn’t skinny, rather large in fact. His skin had become almost scale like and was a deep green. His eyes were slitted like an animal’s and a bright, piercing red. The robe had vanished, replaced by a black overcoat that still did nothing to cover his body, his lower half being shielded by only his underwear. He wore white gloves on his hands and the golden baton had grown larger, resting Mannox’s right hand. A long tongue reached to the floor, dripping saliva.

He landed on the stage and he gave them all a twisted grin. He twirled the large baton in his right hand. The students had cleared everything out of his way and now stood backstage but with instruments in hand.

Then, Shadow Mannox spoke, his voice coming out distorted. “IT’S TIME FOR MY GRAND PERFORMANCE, HAHA! I’LL SHOW YOU BRATS WHY I’M THE GREAT CONDUCTOR!”

The thieves stood on the platform reserved for Mannox, glaring back defiantly at the shadow. The crowd around them cheered for Mannox to win.

“So he becomes a monster too, huh?” Ghost huffed, readying her dagger and making sure her choker was secure. “Doesn’t matter, we’ll take him down just like the rest of them!”

“It’s time to end this.” Survivor agreed, none of them moving their gazes from Mannox.

Music began playing and Mannox began to wave the baton as he called out, “get them you idiots! Or do you want to end up like those back in the classrooms?”

For a moment, the thieves paused in clear confusion.

“Watch out!” Hound cried as she leapt in front of Survivor, blocking off an attacking cognitive student with her axe before blasting it with an ice skill and sending a second one sprawling with a shot from her rifle.

More of Mannox’s students approached them and the crowd’s cheers picked up. That’s what he meant…

“So you’re hiding behind your students now?!” Ghost called out, a throwing knife destroying a cognition followed by another being slashed by her dagger.

“Hiding?! Ha! They are my weapons! They obey me! Be it in music or battle!” Mannox’s distorted voice declared.

Survivor cringed as she swiftly destroyed the cognition she recognized to be Joan. The battle continued for several more minutes, the thieves countering the many cognitive students with both their magic and weapons.

Mannox growled before pointing his baton at the thieves. “Katherine, destroy them!”

The last cognitive student for them to face was Katherine, who held a lute in hand. There was a struggle for a moment, the cognition having access to physical skills that clearly showed as she launched several strings of attacks at them.

Mona was quickly blasting her backwards with a cry of, “Garu!”

The wind skill sent the pink haired cognition falling backwards but she remained standing. The attack allowed Hound to call her own skill that attacked Katherine with ice and finally sent the shadow to the ground.

“Tarukaja!” Survivor called and that skill was raising Ghost’s attack power, allowing her to easily sweep forward and slash at Katherine for more damage.

“She’s weak to ice and physical skills!” Mona notified them as he slashed her with his scimitar.

The thieves quickly followed that lead. They all cringed as they struck the cognition down. Survivor had summoned Eligor to use cleave, Ghost following suit with Nemesis’s own use of cleave. And then, Hound finally followed up with bufu.

Cognitive Kat crumpled for a moment before trying to hit them with one last physical attack. Survivor took the hit but simply used a medicine as they converged for an all out attack.

The thieves felt rather pained to have struck Kat down… but they all knew it was a cognition. Created by the monster they were about to destroy.

Now, they had defeated all of Mannox’s students. The thieves stepped up to the stage from the platform, lookign at Shadow Mannox. The large monster let out a low growl as he also realized that the thieves won.

“For fucks sake! I’ll just do it myself!” Mannox finally snapped. “Bring me my instruments!”

“That doesn’t sound good at all…” Mona hissed.

“Definitely not.” Hound replied as four instruments were rolled out. A violin, a drum, a harp, and a flute. They were all giant in size, about as large as Mannox. The crowd behind the thieves cheered at the sight and they began to chant Mannox’s name.

With a wave of Mannox’s baton, the instruments were floating in the air and playing music. The thieves watched the instruments warily.

And they were right to do so.

Mona yowled as he ducked a blast of fire coming from the flute. Hound let out a grunt as she pulled both herself and Ghost away from the wind that the harp launched. Survivor swept to the side of a blast of lightning from the drum before ducking the ice that the violin summoned.

The group quickly reconvened and Ghost quickly called out, “Eiha!” Causing a blast of shadows to hit the violin. The other thieves followed suit, hitting each instrument with different skills.

The instruments resisted some magic and were weak to others. The violin seemed weak to fire, the harp to electricity, the drum to fire, and the flute to ice.

That was how Survivor noticed the solution. She had been keeping careful track of what was weak to what. Mannox laughed at all of them while continuing to guide the instruments with the baton.

“It looks like each instrument is weak to a different skill!” Survivor told the others quickly.

“Tell us which ones to hit with what! We’ll follow your lead, Survivor!” Mona told their ‘leader.’ Hound and Ghost nodded their agreement, all three having clear determination in their eyes.

After that realization, it was quick for the thieves to destroy each instrument with well placed skills that each instrument was weak to. But that was when they ran into another problem.

Mannox has many replacements. Almost never ending.

“Gah! Bring me new ones!” Shadow Mannox roared with frustration, his free giant green arm waving widely.

The instruments kept getting replaced. The thieves kept getting injured and they were running out of both supplies and magic.

“Merde!” Anne spat as a blast of ice hit her directly.

Survivor was scrambling for a strategy. She was flicking her gaze rapidly over Mannox, the rushing students, and the floating instruments.

Survivor quickly realized the solution and cursed under her breath. How did she not notice sooner?! Perhaps the constant attacks threw her off…

“We have to get the baton away from him!” Survivor notified the others, ducking under and shouting over a blast of wind. “That’s what he's controlling the instruments with!”

“But how do we do that?!” Hound asked, dodging another strike of the drum’s lightning.

Survivor was quickly surveying the scene again. There was a ladder in the back of the stage leading up to the rafters behind Mannox. If someone could sneak past the students and Mannox to get up there…

Cathy was quickly looking at Ghost. They needed Morgana on the ground for healing. “Ghost! I have a plan!”

Upon hearing the plan, Ghost nodded, a familiar smirk appearing on her face. “I can do that for sure! But will all of you be alright distracting him?”

“We’ll have to be. It’s the only way.” Survivor responded.

“Kopf hoch!” Hound was quickly tackling both of them out of the way of a blast of ice. Mona also appeared next to them.

“What’s the plan?” Mona asked quickly.

“Mona, Hound! The three of us need to distract him!” Survivor quickly gave the order. The two didn’t ask anymore questions, moving forward to face Mannox instead. Survivor and Ghost shared one last nod before Ghost was quickly rushing off.

“You’re all still defying me?!” Mannox growled. “Then I suppose I’ll have to perform an encore!”

The crowd cheered upon hearing that and Survivor inhaled sharply at the amount of loud noises. But she wasn’t going to let them lose, she focused everything she had onto the battle.

Mannox’s attacks seemed to become stronger, more vicious. Survivor was quickly casting Sukukaja, a technical skill that raised everyone’s speed. Hound and Mona began dodging with their further enhanced agility (the small amount of greater speed granted by the Metaverse only being raised by the skill), firing their guns and using spells whenever possible. But Survivor began to use more and more spells, draining her energy but keeping Mannox’s attention focused on the threat at hand. Persona after persona used spell after spell, Athena and her nuclear skills being the most prominent appearance.

Until finally, Ghost reached the point she needed. She was ready to strike. It was also that exact moment that Mannox realized something was wrong. He paused in his magic, allowing the three below to finally catch their breath.

“Wait a second… the green one’s missing!”

And it was right when Mannox realized that that Ghost leapt forward from her perch, slamming into the baton.

The large baton went sprawling out of Mannox’s hand. The shadow screeched and his tongue waved wildly as he tried to catch the baton. The instruments collapsed to the ground. The baton shrunk back to normal size and both it and Ghost went rolling across the ground.

The green thief let out a grunt at the impact, but seemed mostly okay as she slowly picked herself up.

Mannox was still crying out, arms flailing in the air as he searched for the baton. “MY TREASURE! MY PRECIOUS TREASURE!”

“NOW!” Survivor practically roared out.

All four of the thieves were springing into action. They launched whatever attack they could at Mannox before finally launching into an all out attack. After the long battle, that was what finally ended it.

Mannox let out a final roar of pain before bursting into shadows just like the others. The thieves didn’t notice him turning back to his normal shadow appearance.

The crowd fell deathly silent and for a moment, the thieves all seemed stunned that they pulled it off. Then, the four broke into cheers.

“We did it!”

“Nous avons gagné!”

“Das bekommt er dafür, dass er sie verletzt hat!”

“It was all with teamwork. Now, let’s grab the treasure and go. Maybe we can go celebrate somewhere if it isn’t too late.” With one last, proud look to the other thieves, Survivor moved to step towards the treasure. She was clearly exhausted, even more so than the others. Her magic and energy was completely drained and she was ready to either be with her friends or simply go home and, for once without Morgana using force, sleep.

But before the thieves could make any other move, Shadow Mannox was sweeping past them. He grabbed the baton and was quickly sprinting up the path, towards the platform holding his conductor’s stand.

But he didn’t make it far. Ghost was quickly giving chase. And as the shadow’s feet hit the platform, Ghost slammed into him with a cry of rage. The baton went spinning across the floor.

Both of them went sprawling to the floor, Mannox on his back and Ghost towering above him. Mannox let out a cry and tried to escape but Ghost simply pinned him down harder, pulling out her dagger.

“Did you think I would just let you get away with hurting her?!” Ghost snarled, her dagger pressed against Mannox’s throat.

Hound and Mona were about to move forward to stop Ghost, but Survivor stepped in front of them (Hound had to steady her as Survivor stumbled slightly), arms spread. She gave them a small shake of her head before turning back to the scene.

All Mannox could do with the threat to his life was whimper. “Please… don’t…”

“Don’t what?” Ghost hissed, her eyes darkening. “Hurt you? You hurt my cousin, my sister. You hurt her in that past life and you hurt her here. How young was she last time, huh?! You don’t need to answer, I know exactly how old she was.” Tears of anger and frustration were rolling down Ghost’s cheeks from under her mask and her hand pressed down on Mannox’s shoulder clenched and twitched angrily at the fabric. Her voice was filled with fury. “SHE WAS THIRTEEN YOU MOTHERFUCKER! SHE WAS THIRTEEN IN THAT LIFE AND SHE’S SIXTEEN IN THIS LIFE. AND BOTH TIMES YOU’VE HURT HER! DESTROYED HER! YEAH, I KNOW THE STORY, THE HISTORY! YOU TOOK HER INNOCENCE AT THIRTEEN AND YOU’RE PART OF THE REASON SHE DIED SO DAMN YOUNG! AND YOU REPEATED IT IN THIS LIFE! WHY WON’T YOU LET HER BE HAPPY?!”

“I…” Mannox was trembling, eyes wide. There was no good explanation. But still, he tried. “Those parents expected me to make their kids perfect because I had been the perfect conductor before becoming a teacher! In both lives they wanted that! I was under just as much pressure! I wanted a reward. And Katherine… she was so, so lovely. I wanted her…”

If anything, that only made Ghost angrier. “You think that’s a fucking excuse?! Reward?! You just wanted her for her looks, you and I both know it! You wanted a trophy, something to play with! You’re his true self! YOU KNOW IT BETTER THAN I DO! YOU JUST USED HER FOR YOURSELF!”

“You… you’re right…”

Ghost seemed to choke on her tears at the almost silent admission. She let out a scream of rage that shook everyone, not just Mannox. She brought the dagger back behind her head and stabbed it down towards Mannox. The shadow let out a scream, awaiting his second death.

But it never came. He shakily opened his eyes and glanced to his right. The dagger was buried into the wood of the stage. Ghost was still above him. She shakily clambered to her feet and swayed slightly as she backed away from Mannox.

“Get the fuck back to your true self.” Her voice was a whisper, but sparked just as much terror as he screaming did. “Confess what you did.” Her head came up to give Mannox one last, terrifying glare. “And pray to whatever the hell you worship that you never see me again.”

The shadow scrambled to his knees. “Yes, of course… you can take the treasure… I… what did I do…” And with that final realization, he faded away in a flash of golden sparks.

Survivor walked over. She gently picked up the baton before walking to Ghost. The green queen was struggling to calm herself, one hand tugging at her choker like before.

“You did the right thing…” It was Hound who spoke from where she was with Mona.

Mona nodded. “You could have killed him… yet you didn’t…”

“I told you before… I don’t want to be on his level.” Ghost took a deep breath, tapping her foot rapidly as her face twisted into a scowl. “But more importantly… I want him to confess. I want the world to see what that bastard has truly done.”

Survivor carefully held out a hand, relaxing when Ghost took it and stopped tugging at her choker. “And now he will…”

Hound opened her mouth to speak, but before she could, there was a loud crash and the very floor beneath them began shaking.

“What’s happening?!” Hound changed her focus.

“The palace is collapsing! We have to get out of here!” Mona alerted them, quickly making his way towards the exit.

The queens followed suit, paling as they realized exactly what danger they were in. The group made their way through the winding halls, Survivor keeping her grip on the baton the entire time.

“Merde!” Ghost called out as she ducked around another piece of falling rubble.

Survivor was clearly lagging behind a bit, having used more energy in the battle than the others. So Hound backed up and swooped Survivor up into her arms.

“I’ve got you, Bücherwurm!” Hound called over the crashing.

“We’re almost there!” Survivor called in return. The thieves noticed a clear and open window at the end of the hall. Survivor was the one who gave the order. “The window!”

Mona, who was back into his reality form and perched on Ghost’s shoulder, nodded. “It’s the quickest path!”

“Dessus!!” Ghost called and she was the first to reach the window. She braced herself before crashing through it, creating a path for the other duo.

The group landed in a heap on the ground, now back in reality by their familiar meeting point. Luckily, that window had been on the first floor. They stayed that way for a few minutes, catching their breath after everything that just happened. And then, one by one, they slowly sat up in a circle.

“Woah… the treasure changed.” Anne noticed, the tears on her cheeks having dried.

Sure enough, the treasure had changed, becoming a sparkling and brand new violin accompanied by a bow. For a moment, the thieves simply stared in awe.

“Why did it change?” Anna asked, glancing away from the fancy violin.

Morgana nodded to himself, reaching up to run a paw over the violin’s surface. “Perhaps this is what caused the distortion to happen. You said he used to be a conductor in this life, yes?”

“Yep. He was a conductor before becoming a teacher here. That’s probably why Cromwell protected him. Because he was well known and boosted the school’s reputation.” Anne explained, glaring over at the school.

Cathy still looked as if she would fall asleep sitting up and Anna was quickly pulling the girl over so her head could rest on her shoulder. Cathy hummed in appreciation at the gesture and sunk into Anna’s embrace, Anne and Morgana moving closer to them as well.

“Whatever the case, we should probably find a way to get rid of it. There’s no way any of us can explain the sudden appearance of such an expensive looking violin.” It was Anna who told the others, continuing the conversation.

“Maybe we can sell it to Untouchables.” Cathy suggested, slowly running a hand over the bow.

“The gun shop?” Anne raised an eyebrow.

Cathy shrugged in response with a tiny yawn. “Maybe they take other items. And I need to get you a new dagger anyways.”

Anna laughed. “I guess you did leave it behind, huh?”

Anne scowled playfully. “That was my favorite dagger so far, too!”

Morgana snorted with a smirk. “Then you shouldn’t have planted it into the stage!”

The thieves chuckled for another moment as the realization hit and their adrenaline lowered.

The group all shared tired and proud smiles as they realized exactly what they accomplished. Morgana spoke up, proudly looking at each queen.

“Queens, our mission was a success!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tu rigoles! = you’re joking!  
> Son abus… = it’s abuse…  
> Wir haben es geschafft = we did it  
> Alles klar dann = Alright then  
> Lâche! = coward!  
> Kopf hoch! = heads up!  
> Nous avons gagné! = We won!  
> Das bekommt er dafür, dass er sie verletzt hat! = that’s what he gets for hurting her!  
> Dessus! = on it!
> 
> ——————————
> 
> Me, a person who doesn’t have much experience writing fighting scenes: *sweats nervously*  
> Hopefully I did it justice though!
> 
> And for those of you who don’t get the summary, it’s a reference to the boss battle theme of Persona 5, Blooming Villain! Which sounds awesome!
> 
> Also, immediately after that Cathy definitely fell asleep and the others had to escort her home.
> 
> ——————————
> 
> Inspiration for the Boss form of Shadow Mannox was a mix between Shadow Kamoshida and a boss from Kingdom Hearts, although the Kamoshida was probably more evident.
> 
> Shadow Kamoshida (inspiration 1):  
> https://cdnen.samurai-gamers.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/06121514/sg-p5r-shadow-kamoshida.jpg
> 
> Symphony Master (inspiration 2):  
> https://www.khwiki.com/images/thumb/4/42/Symphony_Master_KHBBSFM.png/350px-Symphony_Master_KHBBSFM.png
> 
> The Phantom Thief Logo:  
> https://i.pinimg.com/originals/6f/fc/1f/6ffc1f4eef25a6af011ac1d8e1f19861.png


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Confessions and the Phantom Thieves are officially established.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: attempted suicide, victim blaming

Over the course of the next few days, Mannox was noticeably absent from his classes. It filled the queens with an anxiety of the unknown.

Had they pulled it off? Was Mannox still alive? Would they still be expelled?

Morgana constantly reassured them that things should be alright. And the thieves listened to him. They focused on their school work for that period of time.

Until finally, it was the day of their deadline.

And on that day, they felt much more anxiety than the past days. Principal Cromwell had called for an assembly as well.

Cathy sat with Catalina towards the back, the former was simply writing a story in her notebook and the latter was trying to pay attention to the assembly (she was failing). Cathy easily spotted the other three in the crowd. Anne and Anna were close to Kat, all three keeping an eye on each other. Cathy could even spot Jane and Joan among the crowd. Joan talking shyly yet rather happily with the three girls she stood with and Jane was by herself, periodically checking her phone.

Cromwell was droning on about something. Cathy was fairly certain she caught something about the school’s reputation several times through his speech. Even the teachers looked as if they wanted to be anywhere else.

“We need our students to become great examples after graduating! After all, it will build up their reputation and ours! Our students are only the best.” Cathy felt a pair of eyes on her and she glanced up from where she had been writing. Sure enough, Cromwell was staring at her as he said that particular line. He tried to make eye contact too but Cathy huffed and turned back to her notebook, her hands suddenly clenched white.

Just then, the door slammed open. Several people startled and everyone’s heads turned to the noise.

It was Mannox.

The music teacher looked depressed. His eyes were bloodshot and cast to the floor. His hair and clothing were in disarray, as if it was simply a struggle for him to get up and make his way to the school. He simply stood there, slumped and even choking back sobs and cries.

Cromwell shifted a little nervously but plastered on a smile, pretending to not notice the state Mannox was in. “Take Henry Mannox here for example! A famous former conductor becoming a teacher here? Why, he alone has skyrocketed our reputation! Mister Mannox, why don’t you give everyone some words?”

For a moment, Mannox remained almost deathly still. Then, he slowly took shaky steps forward.

Cathy watched with interest. Was this the product of stealing his treasure? All of his cocky and fake friendly attitude was drained from him. It had left behind depression and guilt that Cathy knew on a personal level. And that was only because she had seen it on her face after she regained her memories of Elizabeth… Cathy still felt it sometimes… but she had been getting better.

And honestly? With the way Mannox looked, Cathy didn’t know if he would recover. (The part of her mind that didn’t know when to shut up whispered that it hoped he didn’t) He didn’t have Anne to forgive and help him.

In the time Cathy had been stuck in her thoughts, Mannox had made his way to the stage. But he didn’t go to the podium like Cromwell beckoned him to.

Instead he simply stood on the stage, stumbling slightly as he stepped forward. Those who hadn’t fully noticed just how horrible he looked gasped as they took in the normally confident teacher’s red rimmed eyes.

“I…” his voice came out rasped and croaky, even those in the front row had to listen closely to hear that single word. But then he rose his voice to where the whole crowd could hear. “I committed a great crime…”

“Mister Mannox! What are you doing?!” Cromwell hissed urgently as murmurs broke through the crowd of gathered students and teachers.

Mannox didn’t seem to even hear him. “I have abused my students.” Immediately there were gasps rushing through the room. “I hurt them and would hit them when they wouldn’t get a note right and even when they did! I’m the reason students, my personal students especially have so many damn bruises!”

Mannox broke into a wail. “I even—! I even sexually harassed the female students and— and I raped Katherine Howard!”

Several heads turned to stare wide eyed at Kat, who had her hands clamped over her mouth and tears streaming down her cheeks. Several students were turning to friends, horror in their eyes. “He did this to you?!” They would ask, looking over the bruises and bandages.

“Mister Mannox!” Cromwell tried again, desperation raising his voice’s pitch.

“I raped her! I fucking raped her! I hurt all of them!” Mannox was in hysterics now, and no one seemed to know what to do. The teachers and students were all in too much shock to react. Cathy took hold of Catalina’s shirt sleeve, keeping herself close to the stunned but glaring Senior.

Everyone, Catalina included, had seen the calling cards. But this? This just confirmed the rumors that had washed over the school.

Cathy simply stared at Mannox, as did Anna and Anne. They had pulled it off. Mannox was confessing to everything and even felt guilty about all of it!

But that guilt… it would prove to be overwhelming.

“I… I’ll kill myself right here!” Mannox declared, suddenly pulling out a gun that had been hidden in his jacket.

Several people shrieked at the sight of the weapon and backed up frantically as Mannox pressed it against his temple.

Cathy felt her heart jump into her throat at the sight. Did they get the bad chance after all?

“You’re going to just end it like this?!”

Everyone, even Mannox’s eyes darted towards the speaker, but the gun didn’t move. Anne was staring at Mannox with a furious glare.

“You hurt my cousin and so many other students, and you’re going to just kill yourself?! What? Too afraid to face your victims? Too scared to look them in the eye? Well now you know how all your victims feel! How the girl you raped feels!” Anne snarled at Mannox, keeping one shoulder protectively in front of Kat to cut her off from her abuser.

“Are you going to die a coward who couldn’t live while his victims did or are you gonna serve for your crimes?” A bitter laugh escaped Anne’s lips and a cold stare was in her eyes. “Really, I don’t care which you do as long as you never come near Chaton again, enfoiré!”

“I…” For a moment, Mannox could only stare at Anne. His gaze flickered over to Kat, who paled upon noticing his stare. But then, Mannox nodded resolutely to himself, the gun lowering, and he began to look at every student and teacher frantically.

“Someone call the police! I’m going to serve for my crimes!”

He continued to yell and his voice seemed to spur several people into action. Phones were pulled out and the police were swiftly called.

Principal Cromwell was clearly trying to hide his panic. “Everyone get back to your classrooms immediately! No need to call the police!”

Teachers began to usher students out and Cathy could only watch Mannox toss the gun aside and begin to sob again. She looked to Anna and Anne, who looked back. All three shared a nod before Cathy turned back to a shocked Catalina and the others turned back to a crying Kat.

The thieves were victorious.

~~||~~||~~

After Mannox’s breakdown in the gym, everyone had been quickly removed from the room and taken back to their classrooms.

The teachers were meant to continue teaching, but after the events, it seemed even they didn’t have it in them to continue. So students sat with friends and began to talk, mostly about everything they just witnessed. ‘Phantom Thieves’ came up multiple times. Cathy and Anna, with Mona in the desk next to them began to talk about everything, texting Anne periodically to make sure she was alright.

Until finally, they were released for the day. Everyone had noticed the police cars outside so no one was particularly surprised to see the officers in the halls, questioning teachers.

Anne and Kat met up with the two Juniors at the front lockers. Kat had a glimmer of hope back in her eyes at last. Her tears had dried and she seemed to regain some lost energy.

Considering the circumstances, the thieves were incredibly happy to see it.

“What happened to Catalina?” It was Anna who asked, not seeing the golden Senior. It was already rare for her to join them, but she had managed to do so yesterday, so they all assumed she would be there from that point on. It clearly wasn’t the case.

“She has to talk with the teachers about some work.” Cathy explained, having received a text about that only a minute ago.

“Hope she’s okay…” Upon noticing the confused glance from Kat and Anna, Anne rolled her eyes. “Just because we dislike each other doesn’t mean I want her hurt or anything.”

(Everyone noticed how Anne and Catalina refused to speak to each other unless absolutely necessary, their voices cold when they had to. And that was in the rare case that Catalina was able to hang out with them across the past few days.)

“I’m sure she’ll be fine.” It was Kat who spoke. “She seems like a strong person!”

Cathy glanced back towards where she had last seen her godsister. “She’s too strong for her own good…” she mumbled.

“Did you say something Bücherwurm?” Anna asked. It looked like no one heard her.

“It was nothing… let’s head home everyone, I’m sure we need to relax after today…” Cathy told the others, making her way over to the entrance.

On their way out of the school, the group found cops talking to students.

“Probably should’ve guessed the cops would show up.” Anna hummed, Kat tucked under one arm. Kat was happy to press herself closer to her best friend.

Meanwhile, Cathy carefully inched herself slightly behind Anne, clearly still having that small uneasiness around the police. Anne didn’t say anything about it, simply reaching an arm back to let Cathy play with her sleeve and keep the other girl close.

“People in my class said that he already took Mannox away.” Kat told the group. “I guess they’re just questioning students now…”

“That’s just part of their jobs.” Anne commented with a shrug. “Why don't we get out of here? I’m sure Morgana wants out of his bag.” She decidedly didn’t mention Cathy and Kat’s nervousness.

“Yes, please!” Morgana spoke up, the bag on Cathy’s shoulder shifting slightly. “It isn’t as bad as I thought it would be but it’s still cramped in here!”

“I think that’s a yes!” Anna laughed and the group began making their way across the school yard, trying to avoid eye contact with the investigators.

“Oi, kids!” The four stopped as someone called for them and they slowly turned around.

There was a detective. He had fiery red hair and looked young, probably in his twenties or thirties. He stood tall and proud, wearing a suit and had a notepad in hand.

“Detective Felix Griffin.” He introduced himself. “I was hoping I could ask a few questions about everything that’s going on.”

“You’re that famous rising detective from the news.” Anna took note, not withdrawing her arm from Kat’s shoulders. Ah, Cathy knew she recognized him from somewhere.

Griffin let out a chuckle, but it sounded bitter. “That’s me! They wanted me for this case considering the… calling card from a few days ago. But that doesn’t matter. Can I ask questions?”

Cathy tilted her head. “They’ll have to question us eventually anyways. We’re key players…”

The other girls all nodded in agreement with small, rather anxious chuckles and Griffin looked curious. “Key players?”

The thieves and Kat all tensed slightly. “Be very careful with what you give away…” Morgana whispered from the bag.

“We found him… assaulting Kätzchen…” Anna tilted her head to indicate the now depressed Kat. “And in return he threatened to expel us.”

Griffin’s eyes shot wide in surprise. “Goddamn... I’m sorry to hear that.”

“He’s arrested now.” Anne declared.

“And hopefully, jail waits for him.” Griffin agreed as he wrote something down. “Sorry to move on but could I get your names before we continue?”

They introduced themselves and Griffin couldn’t hold back a laugh. “Four Tudor Queens, huh?”

“Everyone points that out.” Kat said with a small laugh, but it was definitely fake.

For a few minutes after that, the thieves answered Griffin’s questions. It was clear that Anne was antsy to leave, if the rubbing of her hand against her choker was an indicator (it was. Cathy always saw her either doing that or tapping her foot or fingers when she was nervous or just needed to do something. The scratching started when fear and heavy anxiety did). Anna and Kat also clearly wanted to get away, Kat becoming more uncomfortable with the questions and Anna’s gaze drifting around for every escape route.

But they remained as patient as they possibly could. And Morgana had to admit that he was rather proud of their lying skills. Kat remained silent through it all, letting the others explain their side.

But eventually their interrogation began to end.

“Y’know… most people seem to think the Phantom Thieves are a prank. What do you all think about that?”

Kat spoke first. “I think they’re real. They saved me from Mannox and I will always be thankful. Whoever they are…”

“I agree with Kätzchen.” Anna glanced at the pink teen. “They saved my best friend when I couldn’t.”

“They took down a rapist. A pedophile.” Anne glared at Griffin, as if daring him to state otherwise. “They’re good and real in my books.”

Griffin looked to Cathy with intrigue, she had been rather quiet through most of it. “And what do you think of the Phantom Thieves, Miss Parr?”

Cathy stared back at the notepad in Griffin’s hands, tilting her head. “I think they’re doing the right thing.”

“Oh?” It seemed Griffin wanted to hear more from her than just that simple phrase.

“There are oppressed people in society. Those being hurt and abused as we’ve seen here. There are many more people being chained down in the world. If the Phantom Thieves break those chains then they have my full support.” Cathy explained, her words becoming more determined as they went on. Then, she trailed off. “Some people have too much power…”

“Too much power, hmm?” Griffin let out a laugh. “You’re a rather interesting student, Parr.” He gave them a nod of his head. “Thank you for your insight. All of you.”

Then, another cop called over, this one looking like he would rather be anywhere else. “Oi, prodigy man! You better be getting statements!”

A flash of irritation crossed Griffin’s face. He turned to Kat. “Miss Howard, is it alright if I ask a few questions of you now? It would really help the case if you can tell me what happened.”

Kat stared for a moment, before carefully speaking. “Yeah… I can.” Her anxiety towards recounting her trauma was understandable for all of them and Griffin also looked apologetic as Anne pressed a little closer to Kat.

Anne gave Anna and Cathy a nod, telling them that they were alright to leave. The two watched for another second before hesitantly agreeing and giving the cousins their farewells.

“The detective prodigy… we might have to keep an eye out for him.” Morgana spoke up after they got a little further away. “Even if he can’t find evidence… he can still ask questions…”

~~||~~||~~

The cousins had gone straight home after everything and it was now late evening. While Anne was messing around upstairs, Kat had gone downstairs to get a cup of water.

She had been about to open the cupboards when the sound of someone clearing their throat caused Kat to jump. She whirled around to find Agnes, her and Anne’s step-grandmother, glaring at her.

The expression immediately sent alarm bells ringing in Kat’s head. She found herself pressing back against the counter, that familiar feeling of being a cornered animal (just like with Mannox— when he touched her, whispered to her—) practically punched her in the gut. She had seen that disappointed glare on her step-grandmother’s face too many times… it never led to anything good.

“Grammy, what are you doing home…?”

“I got a call from the police and the school…” Agnes said, the glare never vanishing. “So I took my break now and came home to talk.”

Oh shit... using a break just to come home and talk set off even more alarm bells. Agnes never used her breaks. And then, ‘police and school’ finally made Kat realize what this was all about.

“You got poor Mister Mannox arrested over a lie!” Agnes admonished before Kat could even try to explain. “Your lies got him arrested!”

“Lies?!” Kat found herself gaping. Agnes really thought she lied about everything?!

“That or you were the one to push yourself into him!” Agnes blamed, the old woman pointing a finger at Kat.

Kat could only stare, jaw still dropped and tears beginning to gather in her eyes. This is exactly what she feared happening… Her Step-Grandmother even used one of her breaks from work to come home and push Kat back down into the dark place… and Kat felt the familiar pain that always threatened to destroy her from the inside out.

Agnes practically turned her nose up at Kat. “I always knew you were just an attention seeking brat. I suppose that’s why your deadbeat father stuck you with me.”

Kat flinched at the reminder.

That’s right… after her mother’s death when she was so young, so young that she couldn’t even remember her mother’s face, her father had dropped her off with her step-grandmother and never looked back. His claim was that he couldn’t take care of her and the rest of her siblings.

The only good thing that came out of it was when Anne and Anne’s father— Kat’s uncle Thomas, moved in a few years after. When they moved from France after Anne’s mother died of an illness.

Anne has been more like family— a sister— than anyone else had ever been.

“You ruined a good man’s life with your lies, Katherine!” Agnes continued at Kat’s silence.

Kat flinched back. “Grammy, it wasn’t a lie, I swear—!”

“That’s enough, girl!” Agnes hissed in a tone that made Kat stop in her tracks. She then snorted. “Maybe the internship I got for you will work the lies out of you.”

Kat suddenly felt cold. As if a bucket of ice had washed over her. “Internship?” A strange feeling of dread pressed at her mind.

Agnes nodded, looking very proud of herself. “While you were apparently making up lies, I got you a job. In a few weeks, you’ll start working for Francis Dereham as his secretary. Hopefully it will make you an honest and hardworking woman!”

Kat tensed at the name. Francis Dereham… one of the other men who had hurt her namesake… was history truly repeating itself like the gossiping students and teachers joked about? And why did her Step-Grandmother approve of this? Couldn’t she see the repeating events?!

Kat suddenly felt sick. Was she going to be hurt again? Was there no escape?

Agnes had continued talking while Kat began to spiral. “You aren’t a child anymore, Katherine! Which is why unlike your disgrace of a cousin upstairs, I want you to start working as soon as possible!”

“Grammy, I don’t—!”

Agnes tsked. “You aren’t getting out of this, Katherine! You already ruined a man’s life, now you’re going to work that sin off.”

Before Kat could make anymore protests, Agnes was leaving out the front door, leaving the house and Kat behind. “Your uncle and I won’t be home tonight.” Kat could faintly hear her saying.

For a moment, all Kat could do was stand there was the realization of exactly what she had been told set in. And then, a broken sob escaped her lips and she sank to the kitchen floor, curling in on herself.

Kat didn’t know why she was panicking over this. Maybe Dereham was a good man. But… there was a sense of deja-vu that was causing her to break and crumble. She thought the Phantom Thieves saved her, only now she was being pushed into another far too similar situation.

Suddenly, arms carefully wrapped around Kat, pulling her close to the warmth of someone’s body. Kat tensed at the sudden contact and a whimper bubbled from her throat, the familiar sensation of dissociation pricking at the corner of her vision.

“Hey, Chaton.” The familiar voice of Anne calmed Kat immediately and she slumped into the embrace. “Sorry for scaring you…”

Kat inhaled sharply. “It’s okay…” she paused for a moment. “Annie, why am I so scared of the internship… is it because of his name?”

Anne also paused for a second. She had heard everything Agnes had said. “I don’t know Chaton…”

“I don’t… I can’t… not again… not after I just got this hope back…”

Anne began to rock the both of them. Whispering words of comfort into Kat’s ear. Then, after a moment she made a vow to her younger cousin. “I promise you, Chaton, I won’t let anyone hurt you again.”

Kat completely believed her.

(And if Dereham did turn out like Kat dreaded him to be, Kat knew her cousin would be there in seconds. And maybe… if they weren’t just some prank like everyone else at school seemed to believe… the Phantom Thieves would rescue her again…)

~~||~~||~~

Over the course of two days, the group rather quickly decided what to do with the money that they would get from the violin after Cathy sold it.

They would just use the money for a trip to a fancy restaurant. It wasn’t like they had any other good plans. And after that, they would split the money between them.

The day before, Cathy managed to sell the violin at the gun shop for a good amount of money.

The encounter with Untouchable’s owner, the same man from all of her previous visits, had been rather strange… 

It had gone well when it came to selling. The shop owner accepted the violin with little to no questions and handed over an amount of money that Cathy was actually very satisfied with for selling a violin to a gun shop. It would be plenty for both the restaurant (and Anna also hinted at maybe an amusement park, so that was possible) and also to have plenty of leftover money.

But the strange part occurred when the owner said something about how it was almost time. He had handed Cathy a paper bag telling her that it was as thanks for the violin and also that she shouldn’t open it, but to bring it back on her next visit.

That already threw Cathy off. But then two men entered the shop, calling the owner Munehisa Iwai. Cathy did move to leave when the now-named Iwai told her too. But then she stopped at the door before leaving.

Apparently, the two men were detectives pursuing a lead. But Iwai had been cool and compliant, making them question if the lead was even true. One of the detectives, who Cathy had to admit was rather full of himself, had turned on her and wanted to know what was in the bag Iwai gave her.

Between the combined efforts of Cathy and Iwai, they managed to deflect him. Cathy even noticed a rather pleased chuckle escape Iwai as she refused to budge on not opening the bag.

The blue queen finally managed to leave the shop and the detectives behind, Iwai bidding her a safe trip home.

What was in the bag?

A model gun. Much more real looking than the ones they had been buying previously. It threw both Cathy and Morgana off and they agreed that ‘Untouchables’ was rather strange… Both agreed that they should try to buy the gun when they returned it.

After that, Cathy and Morgana pushed it to the back of their minds. It was time for their celebration with Anna and Anne.

The restaurant had been fun for the group. They were able to get food from the buffet before sitting together and laughing. When no one was watching, Cathy would slip Morgana sushi which he was clearly excited by.

At some point, Anne almost started a minor food fight with Anna. This earned them glares from strangers around them that pacified them rather quickly. They began arguing instead, their laughter infectious to Cathy and Morgana.

Really, it had just been a fun time as they ate and talked happily. It was their celebration.

It was sad that they couldn’t bring Kat and Catalina. If they did, they would have had to explain how they paid for this. And that probably wouldn’t have gone very well…

But they all made an agreement to take Kat out for another celebration and drag Catalina along too if she didn’t protest.

They heard people around them spreading rumors about Mannox and the Phantom Thieves. Their calling card had made an impact, but it looked like a majority believed it to be a prank. Still, it felt bizarre to hear people talking about them as the Phantom Thieves! They were used to the rumors and gossip that followed them like the plague.

But of course, it wasn’t entirely fun like they had wished it to be.

The richer people around them made comments about them and each thief could feel themself growing more and more irritated.

They were in the middle of a conversation about how Kat was doing when Anne spoke up.

“I want to continue the Phantom Thieves.”

Immediately Cathy and Anna both paused and even Morgana poked his head slightly out of the bag.

“Alright… what brought this up, Verrücktes Mädchen?” Anna continued the conversation, a curious look on her face.

“These assholes talking about us.” Anne huffed, a hand reaching up to tug at her choker. “They look down on people like us… wonder how many people they’ve hurt…”

Cathy took a deep breath. “There will always be cruel people in the world…”

“There are still shitty people.” Anne agreed. “Ones worse than these gossipers too. Those like Mannox.” Anne’s eyes darkened slightly. “Can we change their hearts like we did with Mannox?”

Anna and Cathy seemed intrigued by the idea and Morgana perked up. “That’s right! As long as they have a distorted desire, then it’s very possible for them to have a Palace!”

“I’m in! If we can help more people, then I want to help. We would be just as bad if we left everyone to fight for themselves.” Anna rolled her shoulder, sharing a determined grin with Anne. “And we can help Morgana too, and I think we owe it to him for all his help!”

Well, Cathy probably couldn’t get out of it in the first place. The Velvet Room would probably make sure of that. And the metaverse, fighting shadows, helping people, these bonds. It’s too good of an opportunity to pass up. Cathy didn’t even hesitate with her reply.

“Well Phantom Thieves, it looks like we’ll be changing more hearts together.” Cathy gave them all a determined nod and everyone smiled when they saw her hand flapping back and forth with her sleeve.

Everyone grinned and they quickly made a small plan. They would keep an eye out for their next target. They didn’t have a clear one yet so they would simply keep an eye out and keep their heads down until then.

After that, chatter perked up a bit. Soon they left the restaurant, reconvening at a bench down the street. Morgana was able to come out of the bag and get more moving room. The talking continued for several minutes as they tried to spend as much time together as they could before they had to go home.

Then, someone spoke up.

“There’s something else we should talk about before we fully become Phantom Thieves.”

The other three glanced over to Anna with intrigued gazes.

“Our past lives…” Anna continued carefully. Upon noticing how the other two tensed, she was quick to elaborate. “I’m not saying talk about everything! Nothing at all if you guys don’t want to. I just think we need to at the very least establish some stuff.”

Anne watched her closely. “Like what?”

Anna paused for a second before nodding to herself as she continued. “Like that we’ll be here for each other. I trust you… and I hope you trust me in return.” Anna bit her lip slightly as she thought of something else. “And well… there’s history books and lessons on our pasts. Some more false than others. So I think we need to establish everything before we learn lies… and truths… about our pasts and get angry at each other.”

Anne and Cathy glanced at each other. They had already dealt with something like that. Cathy grasped at her arm again and Anne took notice, reaching over to give Cathy’s hand a reassuring squeeze that Cathy relaxed slightly at.

“Yeah that’s… that’s fair.” Anne agreed carefully. “And… I trust you guys too.”

“We would understand each other… with everything…” Cathy added her agreement.

Anna took a deep breath. “Well… I offered the idea, so I’ll go first. If you guys don’t want to, then you don’t have to.” The other three watched patiently as Anna began to tell her tale.

And one by one, all three of them did.

Anna told them of being raised in Germany, and they could tell she was filled with homesickness. She told of being pursued by the king and being shipped over to a foreign country that she didn’t even know the language of to marry a king. She told of anxiety and fear upon realizing exactly what she had been thrown into. She told them very quickly of being called ugly, but no one, not even Anna herself pressed on that still open wound. And then, she told them of how Henry got his divorce and how he gave her a castle. She even included the story of Kat, how she had taken the young lady in waiting, still a teenager in that time, under her wing and took care of her. How she always made time to come visit both her former step-children and Kat until that fateful day when Kat was betrayed and executed.

Anne told them of the French court and how fun it had been. How she was brought back to England by her father to become a lady in waiting for Catalina. She never knew it was for her father to push her towards Henry just like he did Mary. Her father didn’t have to, she had unwilling caught Henry’s eye and the king began to pursue her. She told of several years avoiding his advances until finally her father caught wind and threatened to destroy her life if she didn’t do what he wanted her to. She told of Catalina being banished and Anne herself getting married. She told of miscarriage until finally she had Elizabeth. But that wasn’t enough for Henry. And then… she told of her trial, false charges, a dark stay in the Tower of London, and a beheading that the people cheered for.

Cathy told them of fear. Fear as she was forced to marry multiple times to not be ridiculed by society as both of her first husbands died. She told of being ridiculed, called weird, and bullied by that same damn society for her autism which wasn’t known back then. She told them of being forced to marry a king who was well known for his dead wives. She told of being hurt for her ticks, rants, and so-called weirdness. Abused not just by the king she married but her next marriage to the man she thought she loved (she didn’t). She told them of almost being arrested and killed like the beheaded cousins, but managing to survive with her cunning and her words. She told them of just how deeply she cared for the children under her care. And how that same man she thought she loved sexually abused Anne’s own daughter. How she was forced to conform and help him by fear (fostered by the abuse and yelling), pregnancy, and what Cathy thought to be sheer stupidity.

After they all finished there was a second of silence as they processed.

It was clear that all of them had pain from that past life. But no one touched too closely on it. The pains and the source were rather obvious… they had either blanked out (Anna when talking of ugliness and Kat, and Anne during most of her tale) or begun to cry (Cathy during Elizabeth) while talking through their stories after all.

But Morgana took clear note of Cathy’s tale of Elizabeth with shock. Anna seemed stunned but had quickly snapped herself out of it.

“You really did that?!” Morgana gaped at her. Cathy curled into herself and more tears reappeared in her eyes. “Anne did you know?!”

Anne spoke up in a protective snarl. “Somnolente already told me, Morgana! And in my eyes, she’s atoned and still working for more atonement! So you better think very carefully about your next words.”

Morgana noticeably flinched back, burrowing slightly back in the bag. But then he calmed and slowly nodded. “Right… Sorry, Cathy. You were being hurt yourself…” They all knew that was the most they would get out of Morgana, but he apologized, and that was more than good enough for Anne, who relaxed and gave him a thankful nod.

“No… you were right…”

Three pairs of eyes looked over to Cathy, widening in surprise. The girl had her head bowed and eyes squeezed shut, she was rocking but also seemed to be trembling. Her hands were clenched white, her nails digging into her palms.

“I’m a monster…” She seemed to start mumbling to herself. “I hurt a child… a child I viewed as a daughter…”

Cathy found herself being tugged away from her thoughts by a sudden laugh that made her flinch.

It was Anne who let out the laughter. Spiteful and pained laughter. “You’re not the monster in the room, Somnolente! I got the queen banished and unable to see her daughter! I’m probably the reason Bloody Mary happened, y’know? Not like any of the people liked me either…” A cloud appeared in her eyes as she remembered the cheering for her execution.

Anna snorted, drawing their attention to her and pulling Anne out of her spiral. “I’m worse than the both of you!” A distant look came to her eyes and she scowled. “I got a castle out of the marriage… no one else did… and then I left Kätzchen for dead! I didn’t rescue her or try to stop Henry at all!”

There was silence as they regarded each other and their guilt. None of them meant to admit all of that… but once their mouths started moving, they couldn’t stop.

And then… “You know that’s victim blaming, right?”

The three queens whipped their heads to look at the speaker. It was Morgana.

The cat was bristling, his fur raised, something that caught all three off guard. He looked beyond furious.

“It sounds like those cowards were the ones who manipulated you and hurt people! That’s the kind of hearts we should change!” Morgana’s gaze softened. “Not you three… you three are victims yourselves…” His attitude came back as quickly as it left. “So stop blaming yourselves for other people’s evil! You’re Phantom Thieves aren’t you? Well, I won’t have my Thieves being victim blamed, even by themselves.”

Everyone glanced at each other. A noticeable doubt was still in their eyes. It was definitely less than there was a moment ago, but it was still very present.

Morgana huffed upon seeing the clear doubt in his words. “Alright! Look at it this way.” He suddenly turned towards Cathy. “Did you want to hurt Elizabeth?”

Cathy’s fists clenched again. “No.”

“Then why is your fault?” Morgana tilted his head. “Anne! Did you want to send Catalina away? Did you even want to become queen?”

Anne actually seemed to ponder his question. “I think… I thought I did. But now I know that I didn’t want it at all. That was my father’s wishes.”

Morgana nodded at her reasoning before turning to Anna. “Were you the one who pushed Kat towards Henry?”

Anna could only stare at him. Morgana replied for her. “No! Because from what I gathered from your story, Henry was the coward who just couldn’t be pleased!”

For a moment, the queens could only stare wide eyed at Morgana and his reasoning.

“Thank you, Morgana…” Cathy was the first to speak up. There was still a flicker of doubt, but it was clear that she had thought carefully about Morgana’s words.

“You try to act all tough but you really do care in your own way.” Anna agreed, accompanied by her familiar laugh. Morgana was embarrassed by the praise but tried to play it off.

“Our little knight!” Anne was the one who declared with a laugh of her own, the corner of one eye glistening with a stray tear.

Morgana seemed rather proud of that new title. His chest puffed with pride before he realized something. “Hey, I am not little!”

Everyone broke into laughter for a moment. After calming down, the mood seemed more relaxed. Only to dim slightly as Morgana gained a small frown.

“I’m sorry… that you all had such horrible lives.” Morgana seemed to become sadder than before.

“At least we’re in a better place now.” It was Cathy who replied with a deep breath.

Yeah… they were much happier than they had been in the past life. But that past life and the start of this life… that would haunt them. And no one needed to say it. They all knew it. At least now, they could forge their own paths, starting with making society a better, far less oppressed, place. It was much better than their past lives, but there were still people who thought themselves as higher and capable of evil without repercussions.

And maybe… they would start healing themselves as they healed society.

But something was clearly still bothering Morgana.

“What else is bothering you, Kleiner Dieb.” It was Anna who gently asked their fellow Phantom Thief, having noticed the look on his face.

“It’s stupid…” Morgana muttered.

“Morgana, you listened to us and our past lives… that offer of talking and listening goes to you as well.”

Morgana blinked in surprise and watched them for a moment. Then, he carefully spoke, ears pinned against his head. “It’s just… you three remember both of your lives… so why do I remember nothing at all?”

Realization flashed in the queens’ eyes. Morgana’s amnesia had clearly been bothering him more than they realized.

“Oh, Morgana…” Anne gently reached over to pull the cat into her arms. Morgana hissed and struggled for about half a second before filling fully into the hug with a happy hum.

“I’m sure your memories will come back to you.” Anna comforted. “We got ours back, haben wir nicht?”

“And we have a deal. We’ll help you get your memories back, Morgana. You can count on us.” Cathy gave him a confident nod.

Morgana stared for a moment before a smile appeared on his face as he hopped out of Anne’s embrace. “Right! I’m counting on all of you, then!”

The following stretch of silence was calming and everyone found themselves either closing their eyes or watching each other’s peaceful gazes. Cathy even began to write in her notebook again before stopping to ask a question.

“Do you guys get the pains too?” Cathy asked slowly. “When something reminds you just a bit too much of then…”

Anne huffed, tugging at her choker. “Mine never stops…”

At the alarmed looks, Anne quickly clarified. “It doesn’t hurt really bad or anything! It’s more like… a dull throbbing… just kind of making me know it’s there. It didn’t hurt before I remembered so I guess my body realized it’s supposed to be dead. Wearing my choker helps!”

The other three shared another worried look before Cathy carefully spoke. “Well, if any of us start to get phantom pains before going into a palace, we need to say something. It could be really dangerous if we have a pain hit during a fight.”

Everyone agreed easily to that deal before Morgana spoke, ears perking back up. “You should be our leader!”

Cathy stared at him in confusion. “Huh?”

Anne also seemed excited. “Morgana’s right! You already run the strategy, so why don’t you just be the leader in general?”

“I don’t really know…”

“Bücherwurm, trust us. You would make a wonderful leader.”

Cathy was silent for another moment. “Alright, I accept.” The other three began beaming at her and Cathy continued. “But only if our targets and major decisions are based on unanimous votes.”

“See? This is why you make a good leader.” Anna gave Cathy a smirk.

“Well then, we’ll leave most stuff up to you, make us proud, Survivor!”

“And don’t be afraid to ask for an assist!” Anne’s gaze turned from Cathy to the other two. “That goes for everyone here as well!”

“I’ll keep it in mind.” Cathy put her writing notebook back in her bag, but kept out her pen. “Now, there’s one more thing I think we should do before we continue having some fun.”

Under curious stares, Cathy pulled out and opened her journal reserved for their activities as Phantom Thieves and turned to a blank page, everyone watched as she began to write.

One page, ‘Our true stories…’

And on another, ‘Rules to being a Phantom Thief…’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enfoiré = you bastard  
> Verrücktes Mädchen = crazy girl  
> Kleiner Dieb = little thief  
> haben wir nicht = didn’t we
> 
> ——————————
> 
> Main rules to being a Phantom Thief:  
> 1\. Mess with one Phantom Thief and you mess with all of them  
> 2\. No victim blaming  
> 3\. Unanimous votes for the major targets and next moves


End file.
